Everyone in town has heard of Ren, even Madeline Smith, the old farm wife who has been taking care of Kalisto since his arrival to Haven. She looks distinctly dubious as she answers the door, but she is a polite hostess and invites Ren inside, even offering him a muffin before directing him toward Kal's room upstairs. Trailing her through the old farmhouse is an aging golden lab named Oscar, whose special talent seems to be drooling. The house itself isn't terribly remarkable. The old woman seems to have collected quite a few curios over the years, but nothing terribly out of the ordinary. A rickety staircase leads up to Kal's room, where the youth is sitting cross-legged on his bed in cut-offs and a white tank-top, with his nose stuck in a book while the kitten Shadow snoozes beside him, curled up like a little black furry Danish.

Contrary to what she might have expected, Ren is quite polite in return, if cheerful and friendly. He offer an introduction and accepts a muffin before giving Oscar a good scritch of greeting with his free hand, asking if he can take a second muffin up to Kal before he heads up the stairs, with absolutely none of the caution the state of the stairs might elicit in other people. He pushes the door open about halfway, quietly, just enough to be leaning against the doorjamb, a muffin in each hand, as he greets the young mage. "Knock knock, gorgeous, anyone home? Special Muffin Delivery."

Oscar doesn't just wag his tail, his whole back end sways, tail thumping, and he follows Ren all the way to the foot of the stairs. Friendly is one way to describe the old dog. Lazy is another, because he doesn't go upstairs, instead laying down at the foot of them and yawning. His tail continues thumping on the floor awhile. Kal glances up, blinking a bit, and then he grins as he sees who it is. "Hey, pervedude. Gimme one of those." He sets his book on his lap and holds out his hand to catch the muffin baseball style.

Serendipity tosses it over, and wanders into the room, looking around curiously. "Y'could just call me Ren," he points out, not sounding terribly put out either way, "...It's shorter." He drifts over to scritch the furry little danish. "Whatcha readin'? This a bad time?"

Kalisto points out, "I could, but I don't." He catches the muffin, offering Ren an amiable grin before biting into it. "It's a history of the Dark," he explains with a minimal spewing of crumbs. Shadow stretches and yawns as he's scritched, then purrs lazily. "Nah, it's not a bad time. The Warden let me out of gardening so I'm hiding here in case she changes her mind."

Serendipity shrugs lightly and grins back, taking himself a seat on a clear spot of bed. "Fair 'nough, but like I told Robin, if you're gonna go 'round callin' me a perve alla time you at =least= oughta sleep with me first for proof," he teases, making himself comfortable. He glances over at the book, curiously, and finally gets around to breaking off a bit of his own muffin to eat. "Book sounds int'restin'. How come you're just hiding in here 'steada goin' outside? Harder t' find you if you're not at home, y'know."

Kalisto rolls his eyes and shakes his head, but he seems fairly good natured about his alleged long-suffering in the face of offers for sex. Shadow yawns again, then gets up and pads over to Ren to sniff at him. The new person in his territory must be investigated and possibly assimilated. Kal absently touches the book along the spine and replies, "It's pretty cool. There's better ones in Portland though. There's better everything in Portland." With a sigh, he glances out the window and complains, "There isn't anywhere to go in this place."

Serendipity, for his part, absently pets the investigating kitten. He seems equally good-natured in the face of getting turned down once again. "There's =always= somewhere t' go," he replies firmly, "...some of 'em are closer'n others and some are more appealing at a given time, but there's =always= somewhere t' go. Even when Millinockett's the local big city." This last is rather dry; he's obviously aware of the irony of the descriptor. "I remember Portland bein' pretty good, but it wasn't th' be-all an' end-all of civilization or anything."

Kalisto wrinkles his nose at the mention of Millinockett. "There is nowhere to go," he reiterates. "No dance clubs. No theaters. No where to hook up. This place has a diner. A diner, dude." Shadow headbumps Ren's hand, then crawls onto his lap, sniffing around the leather coat.

Serendipity shrugs. "Yeah, a bustling downtown metropolis it isn't," he agrees, petting the kitten and letting him explore as he likes. "Still places t' go. You just gotta look. 's like... okay, say your favourite dessert is chocolate cake, yeah? So you go t' make one, an' what you got is apples an' butter an' flour an' cinnamon an' not a lot else, right? So, okay, what you end up with is gonna be a pretty shitty chocolate cake, but it might be a good apple pie. An' maybe you still like chocolate cake better, but why not enjoy the apple pie in the meantime while you got it? Okay, it doesn't have icing, but maybe it turns out you kinda like cooked apples. You c'n always getcher cake later." He pauses a moment. "...an' now I'm starving," he adds, and polishes off his muffin.

Shadow attempts to crawl into one of the coat sleeves, then gets stuck. His tail sticks straight up and he meows forlornly as he tries to wriggle himself free. He's got really pointy claws, too. Thank goodness they're small. Arching a brow, Kal overlooks the kitten's behavior as he tells Ren, "They're both fattening." But he seems to get the point, and he grudgingly allows, "I would be satisfied doing something cool in this town if it wasn't for the fact that this town is a black hole of suck, and all cool things that enter into it are stripped down until all that remains is a clusterfuck of quasi-zoophile hicks."

Serendipity grins at Kal's reply, and retorts cheerfully, "So you work it off; it's called 'living'." He winces a bit at the tiny claws, and gently frees the kitten from the armhole. "I swear, kitten, nothin' up my sleeve, honest," he informs the little beast, setting him down gently. "Anyway, far's I know no one here's a zoophile, an' we only got a few hicks. You should see what they're like somea the places I've been. ...and been run outta." Grin.

Shadow flails his little paws, but once he's set down, he goes right back to investigating the coat, this time not getting stuck in a sleeve. Kal reaches over to sweep the kitten up and tells him, "You're a pest." Then deposits him on his lap. That works for all of two seconds before the kitten is off again and exploring. Kal grins at Ren at the mention of being run out of places. "Well, compared to Portland, this place blows," he decides. "But I guess I'm gonna be here awhile."

Serendipity laughs, setting his hands on the bed behind him to lean back a touch. "See, that's the spirit. And if you're gonna be here a while, why not have some fun, yeah?" He studies Kal thoughtfully for a few moments. "What kinda hooking up did you have in mind?"

Between bites of muffin, Kalisto says, "You know, hooking up. Like, with your friends and stuff, and then you go out and find stuff to do. Maybe score some drugs, find a good party. There's nothing like that here, it's boring."

Serendipity nods. "Yeah, nothin' ever happens here. I mean, back in Portland, I bet you got other-dimensional versions of people y'knew droppin' by alla time, am I right?" he replies, sounding far too sincere not to me messing with Kal. "Anyway, there's things to do. Just not the same things. Hell, I prolly AM the local 'criminal element' and I haven't even scammed anyone 'round here."

Kalisto gives Ren a 'look' as he says, "I never met any alternate version of me here. It's all these other goatfuck--" He sighs, and amends, "Nice hardworking people." He's trying at least to put a lid on the vitriol. Mention of being the criminal element causes Kal's curiosity to perk up visibly. "What do you do?" he wants to know immediately. "Is there anything fun to do around here?"

"Never met one of me, either," Ren replies, sounding somewhat disappointed about it, "but hey, maybe later. Or else I really =am= one of a kind." The grin returns. "And what, aside from the nice hardworking people? What I do is pretty much whatever I want. Hang out with people, help build things, explore, swim, fuck, cook, maybe play the occasional prank on someone..." He shrugs. "It's not a thrill a minute, but nothin' wrong with simple pleasures, 'specially if I'm gonna be here anyway."

Kalisto smirks and says, "That's what I keep telling myself. I can't be duplicated." Then he sighs as work is mentioned in even a passing capacity. "Who do you fuck around here, anyway? I mean, dude. I'm not saying there aren't good looking people here, but they're all..." He makes a vague gesture with his hands, as if attempting to convey a level of dorkitude words can't manage.

Serendipity laughs. "What, you mean like currently ongoing or ever? At the moment... well, Martin, mostly. Sean, Rex, Rahne, a couple girls down at the Farm, but I think they're movin' on in a week or so." He shrugs a little. "Not that many people."

Kalisto ahs softly and says, "So you're a poly, or maybe swinger, or slut." He says all three terms with an equal lack of condemnation. "I think it'd be weird to just fuck someone and then, you know, have to deal with them again afterward. Unless you were, like, a thing."

Serendipity shrugs a little. "Whatever you wanna call it. Martin an' I... have a thing, an' the others are just friends, at the moment. An' I dunno, it's not that weird. Just someone you hang out with that you've got one more thing t' do with. 's only a problem when someone decides the big blinking sign that says 'you will not be my one and only' really says 'please change me.' Not usually a problem." He sounds reasonably comfortable with this.

Kalisto nods attentively, not quite so comfortable but not getting terribly tense either. "I don't know," he replies. "I used to fuck around a lot, and it was pretty cool. But I dunno. I had this one girlfriend, and after her... it's like she was the one, you know? And it wasn't the same anymore. But that's cool. If that's your thing, then I dig." Shadow meanwhile has found a lock of Ren's hair and pounces viciously.

Serendipity reaches back to wriggle the hair for the kitten, making it more enticing prey. "Found someone I woulda, y'know, stayed with forever," he remarks, a touch subdued, "only she wanted t' be with someone else. So." Another little shrug. "Wasn't like I wasn't interested in anyone else then, just, y'know, less often. 'specially girls." He may or may not have intended to illustrate a point there. "But yeah, y'know. To each his own, and all that." He grins suddenly, glancing over at Kal. "...so, does that mean no chance, or yes, but then I gotta avoid you forever?" he teases.

Shadow wraps paws around the lock and rabbit kicks, growling ferociously. He's tuff! The hair-snake will die! Kal laughs at the kittens antics, shaking his head. "If he's bugging you, I can take him," he offers. He laughs again as he says, "I don't know, dude. If it's just a casual thing, maybe. Because if you're with some other guy, that'll just get messy. I dunno. I've been so fucked up since I got here, I don't know what I'm doing."

Serendipity grins at the kitten too, making the hairsnake wriggle in his grasp, and periodically escape to be recaptured. "Not buggin' me," he assures Kal. "Martin doesn't mind, so that's a'ight an' all. An' I'm damn good at casual." To prove this, he strikes the world's most casual pose. Why, it's so casual he just might melt off the bed. Except that he goes back to playing with the cat. "You gettin' your feet better, now? Adaptin' okay?"

Shadow is relentless in his stalking of the hair-snake. It certainly keeps him occupied as he attempts to slay the vicious (and possibly delicious) beast. Kal laughs, both at Shadow and at Ren. "I see," he replies wryly. "If I ever feel like I can do casual, I'll let you know. You're actually pretty cute, even though I tend to like the big dumb ones." He munches bits of muffin causally, slowly polishing off the snack. "Eh, I'm doing okay. The worst of the sickness has passed I think, from the withdrawal. Now it's just a matter of facing this place straight."

Serendipity grins at Kal, and manages something vaguely approximating a bow, while still teasing the cat. "Why, thank you," he replies most formally, "I shall await your word. ...an' don't face it straight, I'll be totally outta luck then." He winks, then scoops the kitten up, suddenly, and holds him up in the air, looking up at him. "Mew? Prrrar. Hey... c'n I see the stuff Mrs. Smith won't let you wear outta the house?"

Kalisto half-smiles and says, "Yeah, well. Don't wait or anything. I'm just saying if it's bound to happen, I'll be sure to find you." Shadow looks promptly surprised as he's scooped up, and he wriggles a bit, mewing pathetically. Kal laughs as he says, "For real? Uh, sure, if you like. I kinda put it all away in the closet, but I can show you some of it, sure."

"Yeah, for real. Got me curious. ...plus, I liked th' bits I saw, so let's see," Ren replies, and pulls the kitten back down and in for an intense little session of cuddling.

Cuddling seems to calm the ferocious beast, and he nuzzles against Ren's chest, purring contently. Poor little fuzzy baby. Kal gets up and meanders toward the closet, shaking his head wryly. "It's kind of a bummer I'll never get to wear this stuff again, but it's kind of cool to have. You ever go clubbing?"

Serendipity is surprisingly tender with the little ball of fluff. "Yeah," he replies, "been t' a buncha kinds of clubs, in cities. Been a year or two since I was in a big enough place t' have 'em, though. So why aren't you gonna wear the stuff again?"

Kalisto offers, "Well, if you want to borrow anything, if you're ever heading out toward a city, let me know." He rummages, and then strips, showing no self-consciousness about getting naked in front of Ren. Aside from some lingering yellowish post-bruising on the inside of his arms, he looks pretty good. Nice muscle tone. "Because," he says as he worms himself into a pair of leathers that lace up the side from ankles to hips, but are cut so that the halves never quite meet and there is skin exposed, "I'm never getting out of this place."

Serendipity is not so polite as not to look while Kal changes, but then again, he doesn't stare, just watches appreciatively. "Eh, you'll prolly get outta here eventually," he replies, "but why not go ahead an' wear 'em here if you wanna? Or d'you like blending in here better?" It's a sincere question.

Kalisto rolls his eyes and says, "The Warden won't let me. Besides, if I wear this outside, people just gawk at me like stupid hillbillies. Of they make comments about how I'm trashy." Hmph. As if skin tight leather is trashy. He finds shirt made of complicated straps and works his way into it. the black leathery garment displays a webbish design that hails several eras of bondage without doing anything so crass as to actually provide any modesty. As Kal fastens the dog-collar portion of the thing, he adds, "Besides, there's nowhere around here to dance. What's the point?"

As if, indeed. "You can dance anywhere you want," Ren points out. "Sure there's somewhere around here we could even make into a kinda club, though the clientele wouldn't exactly be whatcha get in the city. Anyway. I was gonna say, if you wanted, I could always take some for you t'get into =after= you're outta the house." He grins. "...I wonder what people'd do if we all started dressin' like that?"

Kalisto laughs and says, "Probably freak." He looks thoughtful though. "Okay, I might send you home with some so we can do, like, stealth parties and I won't get in trouble." He steps away from the closet, turning this way and that so Ren gets a good view of his leather-wrapped self. "What do you think? This is a little out of style, but you never really go wrong with black leather."

"'s what I always say," Ren agrees gravely, and looks the outfit over, letting out an appreciative little low whistle. "=Very= nice. An' hey, out here it's the latest thing, right?" He looks Kal over thoughtfully.

Kalisto poses shamelessly, fluttering his lashes at Ren, but then he laughs and says, "This place isn't even ready for this look." He goes back to the closet, poking around. Not a bad view as he bends over to paw through some shoes. "I figure by the time I get out of this place I'll be too old to bother looking good." He sighs.

Serendipity enjoys it equally shamelessly, and shifts positions -- still cuddling the kitten -- to watch better. "Never too old t' bother lookin' good. How old are you, anyhow? Can't remember if I asked or not."

Kalisto replies, his voice muffled, "Seventeen." He draws back with an armload of gear, most of it in the PVC and leather variety though he does have some clothing made from actual fabric. There are a wealth of obscenely worded shirts, for example. "And if I take a fifteen year apprenticeship, I'll be thirty-two before I get out of here, and by then I might as well just be dead."

Serendipity's eyebrows rise. "Fifteen years? Man. That's a hell of a commitment. But, y'know. Thirty-two can be pretty damn hot still. Trust me. Anyway, how d'you know you can't travel anywhere during the apprenticeship? You asked yet? Maybe you can take a field trip to Ottawa or somethin'." He looks at the clothing with interest as it emerges.

Kalisto carefully works his way out of the strap shirt and sets it on the bed, then begins to paw through his wardrobe, also spilled onto the bed. "Here, this isn't so bad, but I don't wear it because I don't want it to get dirty." He shrugs on a button-up of sapphire blue that glitters and shimmers in the light bleeding in through the window. He sorts the raciest of his attire into a pile for Ren to spirit away somewhere in town. "I don't know. I don't know what's going to happen. That's the thing that sucks. I just don't know what's going to happen. I might not even get an apprenticeship, and if that happens... I don't know. I guess I can go wherever I want."

Serendipity admires the shirt. "That's pretty. Rae prolly wouldn't be able t' look away," he remarks, grinning. "I thought you already were bein' Justin's apprentice? I mean, you're busy learnin' how not to blow shit up, right?"

Kalisto grins a bit as he smoothes the fabric over his chest, leaving it unbuttoned. "Thanks," he says. He continues sorting clothes, using some system that must make sense to him somehow. "Well yeah, he's teaching me to control the power, but that's not the same as, you know, teaching me how to be a mage. He's says he's not sure even wants to."

Serendipity nods a little, thinking this over. "I thought bein' a mage was just... what you were, you know? Like bein' a shifter. Or kin. So, okay -- why's he not sure, the whole fifteen year committment thing?"

Kalisto shrugs and says, "I don't know. I never learned this stuff. No one ever thought I was gifted til shit started happening." He sighs, sitting on the edge of the bed poutily amidst his brightly colored and gaudy attire. "I don't know. Probably. I guess he's just... I mean think about it. Why would he want to dedicate fifteen years of his life to teaching some dumb kid he's not even responsible for?"

Serendipity straightens up and goes to just one arm cuddling the kitten, the other wrapping companionably around Kal's shoulders and giving him a squeeze. "Well, y'know, why do people have kids, right? There's the whole legacy thing, for one. An' maybe it's easier t' do stuff with an apprentice.. I dunno about Mages, but a lotta other professions, apprentices do all the grunt work for ya, so that's a plus. There's gotta be somethin' in it for him one way or another, or =no one'd= do it, yeah?"

Shadow stretches and yawns expansively, then settles down to snooze, his chin on one paw. Ren makes comfortable furniture. Kal smiles a little and leans into the arm around him. "Yeah, I guess." the smile fades as he adds, "Maybe that's why he doesn't want to do it. There's nothing in it for him. I mean this here is a charity thing, teaching me how to control it. I guess I should be grateful for that and stop thinking, you know, that it means anything."

The arm stays in place, even as Ren makes a slightly dismissive noise. "='course= it means somethin'. At the least it means he thinks you're worth spendin' the time to teach 'steada writin' off, right? 'cause I'll tell you right now, no one does anything without gettin' something outta it. And I'm not talking about ulterior motives, even; it's things like, I came by 'cause I think you're hot an' interesting and I like bein' around that kinda person, an' wanted t' know you better. An' if I gave you somethin' 'cause I thought it'd make you happy, it'd be because I liked seein' you happy, right? So it's all a question of gettin' it so the balance tips into him wantin' more of the effects of apprenticing you than not."

Kalisto considers this thoughtfully, leaning against Ren and reaching over to give Shadow a petting. "You're right," he admits. Then, lifting his head, he looks at Ren with a cheeky smile and says, "Does that mean you brought me something?"

Serendipity grins at the response. "You're cute," he replies, "...an' I dunno, I mighta. Though I dunno if something I brought'd be stylish enough for you, y'know..." So innocent.

Kalisto persists, "Come on, what'd you bring me." He carefully reaches for the pockets of the coat, being mindful not to disturb the snoozing kitten. This makes his attempted task quite difficult. "I love getting stuff. I don't mind if it's hokey."

Serendipity bats at the pocket-searching hands with his free one, with absolutely no force and a continuing grin. "...a'ight, a'ight," he laughs, and reaches into one of the outer pockets of the coat, coming up with a small package. It's just a little burlap sack, but it's had a purple ribbon tied around it to keep it closed. It's a fairly heavy little package for its size.

Kalisto snags the package triumphantly and sits back, bouncing on the bed til Shadow gives a small meow of complaint, and he settles down to unwrap the package. "Cool," he half-giggles.

Serendipity does in fact seem to like seeing Kalisto look happy, at that. He watches and waits, soothing Shadow with gentle petting. Inside the bag, there's a simple, slightly tarnished silvery-metal flask. From the heft of it, and the coolness, there's likely something already inside.

Kalisto's eyes brighten as he uncaps the flask greedily. "Oooh, a man after my own heart," he praises before taking a sip. Forget sniffing, forget trying to see if it's alcohol or turpentine, he's a brave sort.

It is not turpentine. This is likely positive on all fronts. It is, in fact, very nice whisky. Where it came from is a good question, but here it is nonetheless. "Glad you like it," Ren replies, pleased.

Kalisto grins lazily, then takes another sip and caps the flask for later swigging. "You're a good guy, Pervedude," he decides. "You make my hatred of this place just a little less intense."

Serendipity grins back, setting Shadow gently down, and makes a little mock bow. "My pleasure," he replies, amused but not mocking, and then stretches. "...mm. I always figure any place's better with friends than without, right?"

Shadow blinks a bit, then stretches, yawns massively, and trills as he ambles over to Kal and headbutts his mommy-man. Kal absently pets, trained as he is. "Yeah, I guess," Kal says uncertainly. "I mean on one hand, yeah. But on the other hand, I don't want to get attached to this place."

Serendipity shrugs a little. "Why not? You might be livin' here near fifteen years, after all. An' you can always come back later. Movin' on gets easier the more you do it. Well, to a point anyway. Even if you didn't stay so long, might as well have good mem'ries t' take."

Kalisto says dryly, "If Justin takes me as an apprentice, and he might not." He scritches Shadow's ears, then scoops him up to give him a smooch on the head. This seems commonplace to the kitten, who endures the affection with little complaint and much purring. He's on the go again soon though, squirming free and clambering over the forbidden clothing curiously. "It's the principle," he points out. "I don't want to be here. I never asked to come here."

"So in retaliation," Ren replies equally dryly, "you're gonna be miserable an' have no fun an' hate everything, 'cause that'll really show them?" He arches a brow. "Are they even watching? No offense meant, but do they give a damn whether you're happy? Some guy once said the best revenge is living well. It was Coyote; he says the best revenge is the one where the guy never sees it comin' 'til too late, an' ends up totally miserable an' laughed at while you get whatever you wanted an' leave town, with no proof t' connect you. But hey, while you're workin' out the plan, living well beats the alternatives." He's ended up grinning again, but sobers a little. "I'm just sayin', by hatin' it, who're you hurtin' more, Them or you?"

Kalisto shakes his head and says, "No, you don't get it." He eyes Ren seriously. "It's the principle. If I... If I just accept it, move on, and live my life like all this is okay, it's like saying everything I lost doesn't matter. It's like everything I loved... It's gone, Ren. All I have is the memory of it, and if I let that go..." He looks away, shrugging. "There's just people I'm not ready to sweep under the rug like they never existed. People who didn't do this to me."

Serendipity pulls his legs up and sits crosslegged, looking thoughtful. "I'm not sayin' forget 'em," he clarifies. "Hell, send 'em letters. We got a Corax, and there's traders go through, prolly that airship -- well, not THAT airship, but the one people thought it was -- can take stuff too. The things y'love are still there, it's just that you aren't with 'em. That's a lot different than them actually bein' gone. 'cause you =can= go back. Maybe even go back an' illustrate your displeasure with the situation. You c'n cherish your memories all you want, an' that's great, but it's not disloyal or anythin' t' also go on with your life in the meantime." He shrugs a little.

Kalisto shakes his head quickly and says, "I can't write to them. I can't let them know where I am." He sighs, fidgeting with a leather strap on a harness-type shirt. "Bryce was saying something like that," he admits sullenly. "About going back and taking care of the problem, once I have the power. But it's not just my friends. It feels like I'm cheating on myself, letting myself accept this. I can't help that the idea makes me feel like a traitor."

Serendipity reaches out and catches the fidgeted-with strap between his fingers, smoothing it gingerly back down into place. "How come you can't let 'em know where you are? Though I bet we could find a way 'round that, 'f you wan'ed. The rest, though..." He trails off. "...you know anything 'bout Coyote? Or 'bout his children?"

Kalisto shakes his head. He's quiet a moment, letting his fidgeting hand drop. Shadow is upon it in a heartbeat, scentmarking and purring. Kal smiles vaguely and scoops the kitten up for a cuddle. "I guess part of me is afraid they won't care. Another part of me is afraid they will, and they'll try to get involved." He shrugs, then adds, "All I know about Coyote is that he's all part of that nature-loving pantheon stuff."

Serendipity nods once, slowly. "A'ight. Don't rule out the whole letter idea, we might be able t' work that one out. Anyway -- you get brought up with any kinda, I dunno, belief, pantheon, whatever you wanna call it?" he inquires.

Kalisto shakes his head again. Shadow is cuddled into the nook of his arm, where the kitten settles in comfortably. The purring is loud. "Nah, not really. I mean you hear stuff, but my mom and dad weren't really into religion. They just kinda threw parties on the holidays, but we didn't believe any of it."

Serendipity grins a little, and nods again. "Yeah, well... it's prolly easier if you do. This's pretty much literal, but you c'n take it as metaphor too if that's more comfortable. So, Gaia's the spirit of the earth, right? An' all the animals, includin' people, an' presumably th' plants too, are her kids. Maybe the rocks, I dunno. Anyway, every being, they've got a spirit too. But like there's hierarchies in human societies, there's hierarchies in spirit ones too. So you got low man on the totem pole ones, an' then up near the top you got the big ones, th' ones that represent th' whole species, an' over =them= there's a group that's Gaia's favourites. That clear so far?"

Kalisto replies dryly, "So far so good. I assume Coyote fits into this hierarchy somewhere." He glances down to Shadow, petting him gently. For all the bitterness, he seems to have a soft spot for the small furry creature.

Serendipity grins again. "Heh. Well, 'course. My people's stories, he's the top, started it all, but I'm givin' you kinda the all-purpose version. So he's up in that top tier, with Wolf an' Raven an' all. See, Gaia figured she could use some help makin' sure things ran smoothly, so she gave somea the humans to eacha the ones in that tier, an' they had jobs, like the wolf shifters were t' be her warriors, an' the ravens her eyes an' ears an' mouths, an' so on. Coyote's her laughter, okay? But most people don't know, 'cause we mostly don't spread it 'round, he's also..." He hesitates, looking as if he isn't sure whether to share this or not. When he does, it may be a bit of an anticlimax. "...he also teaches. Not, like, in a classroom or anythin', he just sets things up so people learn what they gotta learn. Sometimes it's easy, sometimes it hurts. Anyway. It's th' stuff that hasta happen."

Kalisto squints at Ren dubiously, as though this revelation of Coyote as a teacher is something of a letdown after all that buildup. "Object lesson," he supplies wryly. He could apply for a job as evil villain if only the cat he sat the stroking wasn't only a few weeks old and laying on its back with paws in the air. "So you're saying maybe it's a matter of design that all this happened, and to some greater purpose."

"Yeah, pretty much. Now, see, I know Coyote's there an' I know I'm onea his, so I gotta head start there, but, y'know... it still doesn't neccesarily mean I like whatever happened. An' trust me, plenty's happened. But even if you don't believe there's anything at all t' give things a higher purpose, that doesn't mean it might not be doin' it anyway." Even Ren looks briefly confused by that; he thinks it over a second, then nods. "I guess what I mean is, it might not end up sucking so much in th' longterm, so may as well give it a chance in the short term."

Kalisto regards Ren blandly. "That still doesn't mean I can just suddenly decide oh boy how super Haven is, and how I can't wait to make friends with everyone. Do you think I'm trying to make things worse for myself?" Now he looks just a touch ticked. "It's not my fault I hate it here. It's not Haven's fault either, but if I went around smiling and being mister helpful happy guy -- it would be a lie. I may not be nice, and I may not be easy to get along with, but at least I'm being honest."

Serendipity waves a hand vaguely. "You're gettin' me wrong. I'm just givin' some other ways t' look at things, I'm not tryin' t' get you t' turn into Mary Sunshine or anythin', promise. You got a right t' be pissed, from th' bits I got told. An' I happen t' like honest." He's quiet a second, thoughtful. "...coyotes an' humans got one big thing in common, more'n most creatures. They're adaptable. They're survivors." He reaches out to scritch the kitten, and glances over at the clothes. "So... you got any other favourites here?"

Kalisto gives a slight paranoid twitch as he asks, "What've you been told? What are people saying about me?" He doesn't move away as Ren reaches over to scritch Shadow, though. The kitten's paws flex, baring tiny needlesharp claws, which he does not employ, instead preferring to express himself with purring. Glancing over at the pile of clothing, Kal shrugs a little. "I like the shirt I got on, and some stuff. Most of this is for the club scene. There's really no point to going out without a club to be seen in."

Serendipity grins crookedly. "Just what you told me, gorgeous. Nothin' more or less. What's wrong with goin' out just t' be seen, in general, though? Sometimes, anyway..." He reaches over and looks through a few items himself, curious.

Kalisto wrinkles his nose and says, "By who? There's no one in this town worth being seen by." There are interesting articles, apparently rubber is big where he comes from, and the PVC fashioned to look like denim only in hot pink is charming on so many levels.

Serendipity presses a hand to his chest melodramatically. "Sir, you wound me," he replies with great umbrage, then picks up the pink thing and holds it up to himself. "Whaddaya think, pink my colour?"

Kalisto regards Ren seriously, eyeing the garment, then the kin. "Mmn, you'd do better with earth tones, maybe something in the orange department, but you could make it work if you wanted to do something really femmy." He tosses the advice off like one might discuss the weather. Ho hum.

Serendipity looks very briefly startled, then laughs. "Y'think? ...last time I did something really femmy, he threw his drink at me the next night," he cracks, and gives the thing another critical look before setting it down and poking at a few more interesting items. "Well, 'less you could the wedding gown."

Kalisto laughs and says, "Well don't date them unless you want melodrama. Dude, a wedding gown?" That gets another laugh. "Here, try on..." And he paws through the clothing one-handed, a sleeping kitten in the crook of his other arm. "Here, try these." He separates from the pile a pair of black rubber shorts that look like a stretch fit and a dropped baby blue t-shirt with the words Boy Toy written across the in perky white lettering.

Serendipity accepts the items, looks them over curiously, then kicks off his boots and stands. "Sure, why not?" he agrees, and sheds the coat and shirt in short order, dropping them on the bed behind him. "Yeah, a wedding gown," he agrees, pulling on the top and undoing his trousers, "Robin was havin' a joke. ...Looked pretty good in it though." He grins again and steps out of the trousers, into the shorts, which seem to leave even less to the imagination than the usual pants. He doesn't seem uncomfortable with the brief nudity. What a shock.

Kalisto doesn't seem uncomfortable checking Ren out, either. "You keep in good shape," he says approvingly. "Nice. Turn around and let me see how those make your ass look." Nope, not terribly self-conscious here.

"Thanks," Ren replies, unselfconsciously, "Don't have a lotta choice, but I'm not complainin'..." He turns as requested, and strikes a casual pose; the fact that it's a particularly good posture for viewing from behind is reasonably subtle and completely accidental, honest.

Kalisto regards Ren's ass critically, then pronounces, "Looks good. Nice." There is genuine appreciation there, though if it's a sexual thing, he's good at playing it cool. "Have you ever thought of getting your nipples pierced?" He pets Shadow absently. Ah, casual conversation.

Serendipity looks back over his shoulder at Kal, and grins, flashing him a playfully flirtatious glance and then strolling over to sit on the bed again. "Glad you approve," he replies, and sounds like he means it. "...I've thought 'bout it, yeah. Never really had the opportunity when it came t'mind." He considers. "Bet Sean could do it, 'f I had jewelry."

Kalisto grins at the flirtatious glance, reaching over to tug the shorts slightly to pull them into place to his satisfaction. "Makes your basket look nice too," he comments. "You should, especially if you're really into sex. I was going to have it done, but my parents said not til I was eighteen."

"Thanks," Ren repeats, grinning back, "Packed it m'self. An' yeah, everyone I've known who had 'em seemed to enjoy it a lot..." He pauses, then grins wickedly at Kal. "So, y'know, it doesn't matter what your parents think about it here. I =could= ask Sean 'bout it..."

Kalisto snorts and says, "Yeah, okay. But knowing Justin, he'd say oh no you can't. Because it'd be, you know, possibly fun." He holds up a few more shirts to Ren, checking his coloring against the various fabrics. "You've got good skin," he mentions.

"It'll hurt like hell," Ren comments brightly, then agrees, "but yeah, it could be fun. Wouldn't think Justin'd care, 'less you'd be in danger of grundin' your lightning in your nipples or something..." He holds a little more still than he generally would, letting Kal check colours, but reaches a hand out at the compliment, fingertips briefly brushing Kal's cheek. "Yours isn't exactly unappealing either."

Kalisto pauses, considering the prospect of being a grounding rod. His tongue stud clicks in agitation against his teeth, and he suppresses a shiver. "Maybe I'll hold off on that one," he decides. As Ren touches his cheek, he glances up and grins a bit. "Thanks," he says awkwardly. "I was afraid coming out here to lame-land would cause me to break out or something, but I think it's actually getting better."

Serendipity's fingers idly skim one of the leather straps on their way down. "Not s'prised. Air's a lot cleaner out here, y'know? Less you're directly downwind of a fire or somethin'." He tilts his head, and smiles a little. "It's lookin' rela nice."

Kalisto grins again, ducking his head as a touch of color comes to his cheeks, and his curls bounce around his face. "Thanks," he says. "I guess that's one good thing coming from all this. That and not being ghouled. I tell myself that, you know. This beats what would've happened if I'd stayed."

Serendipity watches the curls, and nods. "Yeah... I've heard 'bout that. Makes your will not your own, so you do whatever the vampire says, right? 's just 'bout worse'n death, if you ask me."

Kalisto nods a little, curls bobbing. "Yeah," he says glumly. "That's why I can't go back, and that's why I don't want my friends to know what happened. If they try to get payback, you know, you don't fuck with the leeches."

Serendipity considers. "Well... you don't hafta tell 'em =everything= that happened. You could just say somethin' like... it turned out you had this wild talent, and there's a guy out here who can teach you how t' control it, so he is. You don't hafta mention the threat part."

Kalisto complains, "Yeah, but that's almost as bad as lying." He pauses, then adds sullenly, "Besides, they might not even miss me." He gives Shadow a cuddle, and the kitten's eyes drift open as he offers up a muffled mew by way of opinion. As long as there is warmth and doting, he seems content.

"Why? It's true," Ren replies, with a little shrug. "They prolly do miss you. ...Think they know about the vamp you killed? If they do, they prolly already think it's related somehow." He makes a face. "Not a lot you c'n do, really, t' make =sure= they don't find out."

Kalisto shrugs and mumbles, "Dunno." Clearly not a topic he's bursting with confidence about. "Besides, thinking about it just makes me mad. That's why I hate this place. I can't do anything or go anywhere that doesn't remind me of what happened."

Serendipity pauses a second, then nods. "Yeah," he commiserates, "Know how that is. It oughta start t' pass some soon, but, yeah." He shrugs, then brightens -- it's not =fake=, it seems entirely sincere, but there is a tiny bit of effort behind it, like getting a vehicle rolling from stopped. Overcoming inertia. "Oh, hey. I actually did get some chocolate, so if you still wanna make brownies sometime..."

Kalisto perks up immediately. "You did?" he asks, all glumness driven forth by the promise of brownies. "Sweet. I still have our stash." He pauses, adding ruefully, "Most of our stash. Enough for brownies."

Serendipity laughs. "I c'n get more, don't worry. I mean, not boatloads or anythin', but enough. So we oughta be fine. ...This'll be fun. You got a particular time you wanna make 'em?"

Kalisto replies, "Hell, any time we can get away with it." Ruefully, he adds, "Probably not here, since the Warden might sense fun and destroy it wherever it dwells. But if you know of a place, then just let me know whenever."

"I was thinkin' the diner," Ren relies, all innocence. "That's where I =usually= cook things, anyhow. We c'n leave some with th' other baked goods an' all, rent for the room." And not at all because it might be funny.

Kalisto regards Ren with a 'look' -- however, the grin that follows implies that he would find it hilarious and is all for the idea. "Okay, but if anyone asks, you suggested it," he replies.

Serendipity mock-pouts. "Yeah, sure, blame the coyote-kin, everyone else does," he sniffs woefully, and gives Kal such a puppy-eyed, put-upon look.

Kalisto arches a brow. "Please," he drawls. "I invented that look. Listen, if they're going to suspect you anyway, why not let them, and then think of all the stuff we can pull off that we -couldn't- pull off if they thought it was both of us."

Serendipity arches one back. "I'm prolly two years older'n you, I claim patent by seniority," he retorts, and grins. "Don't worry, I'll throw myself on th' grenade if need be. Well. Th' brownie."

Kalisto leans over to pat Ren on the arm. There there, we're all on the same side the gesture seems to say. "You're a brave man, Pervedude. You won't regret it." Shadow utters another muffled mew, then Kal leans back, rolling his eyes. "Oh no, I disturbed His Highness."

"There's just one thing you gotta agree to, though," Ren informs the protomage, and gives the kitten a scritch to make up for the disturbance. That poor kitten.

Kalisto eyes Ren uncertainly. "I'm listening," he prompts, not willing to get into any bargain without hearing the terms. Seems the city didn't breed all the sense out of him. Shadow purrs, mewing again as the scritch is accepted as appropriate due.

Serendipity quirks a wry half-smile. "Nothin' like that. Just if there's trouble? Let me do the talkin'. Yeah?"

Kalisto shrugs and says, "Sure, that's fine." Rolling his eyes, he adds, "It's not like anyone in this town believes anything I say anyway, and they're always looking for reasons to bust me, so if you want to handle it, you just get down with your bad self."

Serendipity shrugs. "I haven't had any reason t' doubt you yet," he replies, and stands, making a full-body stretch. "...Mm. I better get goin' while there's still light. Promised Rae I'd go lookin' for nicer kitchen stuff for her." A thought occurs to him. "...wanna come with? Maybe drag Martin along too if we run inta him on the way?" he invites.

Kalisto doesn't look certain about this 'looking for kitchen stuff' as it sounds dangerously close to working. "We'll see," he replies. "Here, why don't you take some of these?" He makes a smaller pile of forbidden clothing from the larger pile on the bed, one-handed since moving the cradling arm would disturb His Preciousness.

Serendipity seems to notice his clothing, and laughs, starting to take the shirt off. "I prolly oughta give this back t' you," he remarks, and pauses once it's in his hand to illustrate his next explanation with gestures, "...so, the space below your window out there? Nice 'n wide open. I figure easiest way t' do this is, we put 'em in a bag, I leave an' go out there, an' you can just drop it down t' me, and I'll store it for you in th' Treehouse. Sound good?"

Kalisto waves a hand and says, "No, no. It's totally you, man. I think it's cute." He pauses, then notes, "You look pretty good without it, too." As Ren explains The Plan, he nods quickly, curls splaying. "Okay dude, got it."

"Yeah?" Ren glances down at himself, and grins. "...well, maybe I'll borrow it a little, then. Be fun t' see how people react." He slips the shirt back on, then pulls a decent size bag -- actually, it seems a lot like a pillowcase with a drawstring -- from one of the pockets of his coat, and hands it over. His own clothes, he folds neatly, and offers over for adding to the bag. The coat he keeps, draping it over his arm, and he steps back into his boots.

Kalisto laughs as he takes the bag. "You planning on robbing someone's house on the way home?" he asks. There is no help for it. His Preciousness will have to be dethroned, and as Kal sets the kitten aside on a pillow, Shadow mews plaintively, then stretches and curls up, blinking away his sleepiness as he regards the monkeys curiously. Biiiiiiiig yawn. This kitten has a rough life, clearly. Kal packs up the bag neatly. "You can borrow anything you want," he mentions. "I mean, it ain't like I'd ever get out of this house wearin' it, so someone might as well enjoy."

Serendipity nods solemnly. "Yeah, an' I figure this is th' least conspicuous thing I c'n wear t' do it," he replies, then shakes his head. "...nah, just brought it for this. Thoughta th' offer before I came, y'know?" He reaches back and deftly undoes the leather thong that holds his hair back, letting the mass fall free. "So, a'ight. I'll head out, an' next couple of days or so, we got baking to do. Plan?"

Kalisto's expression softens some at the mention of the offer, and then goes a touch surprised as he sees Ren with his hair down. "You're really kind of a babe," he says. Then, "Okay. It's not like I'll be going anywhere, so whenever is good."

Serendipity grins boyishly at the compliment. "Thanks, gorgeous," he replies, and flips the coat over his shoulder, runway-model-style. "Don't get too bored 'til then, yeah? If you do... well, y'know where t' find me." With that, he walks to the door, stop to turn and blow the pair on the bed a playful kiss, and then heads down the stairs.

Kalisto waggles fingertips at Ren in parting. "Okay, be cool, man." Shadow merely stretches again and lets his head hit the pillow. He's had an exhausting day. Mrs. Smith does give Ren an odd look on his way out, but smiles pleasantly all the same. After all, he's not her charge. He can dress however he likes, lucky dog.