the plot

[♦ Loki Roland]

Loki waited patiently while the other girls dawded on behind her. She was hungry, but with four other girls, a demanding kitty, and a group that was mostly a democracy, it was hard to make decisions. Sometimes it only took a minute or two for them to decide on things, like if everyone was ready to order. Other times, well, Loki pretty much tuned out the talk and made up music in her head. It wasn't that she didn't care about the other girl's opinions, it was just that she usually just didn't care one way or the other. She was more of a supporter than a leader, so whatever the team decided, she pretty much went with.

She wasn't really sure if Gayle was actually going to run next to the taxi, but she figured that it would probably be a bad idea. Unless they weren't going on the highway, it would probably be impossible for her to actually do it. Gayle was a good athlete but sixty miles an hour seemed a bit too much for her. Mandi probably had gotten them a big van sort of taxi so it wasn't like there wouldn't be enough room. Vans would definitely hold five girls but the bag situation might be a bit of a problem.

"Getting to the house sounds nice. Can we just pop through the drive thru? Or maybe... " Loki pulled out her phone. Searching through her apps, she found the one that suggested food places to her. Punching in what she thought was the house's address, her phone came back with a list of restaurants close by. "Maybe Debarun and I can just pick up take out once we get there? Gayle can come too and we'll do some exploring too!" She didn't want to go to a place where her friends wouldn't have many choices food wise. Her magic iphone and some exploring were probably going to allow for more food options than in and out burger. Besides she was sure that she'd have another chance to go to the fast food joint.

Catching Mandi's smile, she returned it with one of her own. "I'll call him later so he knows I'm safe," she assured. Considering she was lucky that her dad had let her leave earlier in the first place, she wasn't about to push her luck too much.

[♦ Antigone Bennett]

One of these days, she was going to kill the cat. When he least expected it, she would strike. Perhaps she would string him up by his whiskers, or throw him into a washing machine... or maybe she would shoot him with a tranquilizer and dye his hair some outrageous shade of pink, or perhaps purple. And the good thing about a tranquilizer dart was that she didn't have to reach a top shelf to get him, plus it was good target practice. He couldn't complain much because she was technically working on her not so stellar aim.

She had gracefully declined any sort of food from the airplane, since what she had heard, and saw after the fact was far below the standards that she usually held all her food to. Besides, spam wasn't a food. It ranked below Tofu and other vegetarian alternatives, which wasn't half bad when properly prepared. She had suffered through all her step-mother's fad diets, including a stint of vegan-ism and her vegetarian phase, both of which had caused problems when she was in the middle of her serious training before competitions. So she would pig out during lunch away from her mother. That didn't mean she wasn't on a strict diet, except complex carbs, she wasn't exactly allowed candy and sweets in her life. Or heavily processed whatchamacallit like spam.

“I know cat.” Tig replied to the muttering from the backpack. “I tried, but she keeps putting the handbags back in my stuff.” she was going to try to give every one of her housemates a make-over, but it was turning out to be harder than she thought. The subtle approch wasn't working, as all the things she got for others were somehow ending back up in her collections of clothes. She'd find a way though, it it killed her.

“That's fine, as long as I get a decent-sized closet.” she was kind of dreading a look at the closet. Yes, she had a suitcase full of essentials until her trunks arrived with the rest of her spring and summer essentials. She was hoping that this mission didn't take too long, because she wasn't looking forward to spending too much time away from a fashion capital, and her coach. And her half-siblings, because the rest could just climb a tree and stay there. She wasn't really related to them anyway.

As the talk turned to taxis and the pros and cons of running beside them, Antigone went ahead and let her mind wander. For the most part it was all mental lists of things they needed to set up shop, thank-goodness she had gotten maps before they boarded the plane, because she wasn't exactly sure where to get them out in the city. Even though she was tired, and there was an ache in her head that was growing into a full blown migraine. She was beginning to desperately want to get away from all the people and the crowds, though she wasn't sure if she wanted to get food from a drive thru. Other than the few and far between cravings for fast food, she didn't actually eat that much.

She perked up at the mention of getting food from a local restaurant, which was slightly better than a McDonald's or In-and-Out. Besides, sending Loki, Gayle and Debarun out would kill three birds with one stone. The restless would get their exercise, they would all get their food, and the area would get a rudimentary examination and explored. “I like Loki's idea. So can we get moving now?” Tig said, trying to get everyone shepherded out the door. She wasn't sure if it was just her, but the decibel level seemed to be raising with every second. What she wanted most now was some advil and a quiet, sparsely populated area. That would be her version of Nirvana.

[♦ Mystic]

“I tried, but she keeps putting the handbags back in my stuff.”

Yes, and like he'd said before. She would only keep them and actually USE them when pigs flew. Or elephants. Or when it actually rained cats and dogs. Shaking his head with a sigh, he peeked out of the backpack, green eyes glancing around. The girls were taking far too long to get themselves situated and out the door. Girls...why DID the soldiers have to be girls? He realized that they were great at what they did, but getting them to actually DO it! Girls were chatterboxes, gossipers. And they had far too much to discuss, far too much to do, to just be lollygagging out here! Then again...they were discussing food...and food was good...food was fuel, yes?

"Maybe Debarun and I can just pick up take out once we get there? Gayle can come too and we'll do some exploring too!"

"Fine, fine." said the cat, waving a paw at them, eager to go. "But lets just go! I'm hungry, and we've got far too much to do to sit around and contemplate such trivial matters." That meteor was sitting around somewhere, and they had to find it before someone else (like Beryl and her minions) did! And as much as Mystic loved food, it was hardly even in the same category of importance. Hardly. Peeking out again, he saw they were finally nearing the doors of the airport. FINALLY! 'Just keep moving...' he thought, hoping they would catch the mental waves he was trying to send them. 'Just a little further... Tig was actually trying to get them all out onto the sidewalks, now, and Mystic sighed in relief. He'd actually have to THANK her later for that. Maybe he would spare one of her dark colored blouses at naptime...

Maybe.

Shifting inside the bag, he waited until he felt the change in the air -- they were outside! FINALLY! "Someone can carry me now, you know." he called out to the girls, hopeful. So maybe it would look slightly strange to take a cat out on a walk. Hollywood WAS strange. And he needed some air.

[♦ Mandi Harkins]

Mandi nodded to Shivani, agreeing. Running by a taxi might be a little strange, but this WAS Hollywood...people were probably used to it, what with all the celebrities that left this airport. A few crazed fans were sure to follow down the street, right? But that wasn't the sort of attention they needed right now, anyhow. They'd only just arrived to town, after all. And they needed to be as low-key as possible in order to keep their identities, and their mission, as safe as possible. For if people were suspicious of them, they surely wouldn't cooperate.

Loki said she would call her father later, and while the brunette wasn't so sure it was fair to leave this guy waiting and possibly worrying over his charge's whereabouts, she supposed they really did have other more important issues to take care of now, and they really needed the girl with them. Nodding to her with a slight shrug, they contiued on, talking about their plans for a meal. Take-out and drive-thrus were brought up now, giving her an idea. "Here, why not just make this easy? We can grab food from a drive-thru, get to the house, and Gayle can do laps around the living room while we get to business." She glanced in her friend's direction, casting her a slight teasing smile, before allowing her eyes to scan the other girls to see their reactions. It seemed like a decent plan to her... kill two birds with one stone and all, right? And everyone would be happy. Those who didn't want to sit didn't have to, they'd be fed, and they'd be talking about their mission. Plus, they'd have the taxi ride back to catch up before diving into business. Seemed like a good compromise to her!

Mystic was whining to be let out of her backpack now, but Mandi wasn't so interested in letting him out yet. After all, what sort of taxi would they be able to flag down with a cat in one of their arms? It just wouldn't do. "You're going to have to wait, Myst. Just a bit longer, it's not going to kill you..." He had air, and hey, now he had a snack. He'd be okay until they got back to the house. Then he could run free for as long as he wished. Turning to the girls, she asked as she adjusted the strap to her bag, "So. Do we have a plan, then?"

[♦ Gayle Monroe]

"Here, why not just make this easy? We can grab food from a drive-thru, get to the house, and Gayle can do laps around the living room while we get to business."

Gayle, who was already loading her luggage into the van taxi, paused as she heard her name, then grinned. "Sounds like a plan! Let's get to it!" What a funny group they were. All of them wanted to get going, but with all of them now reunited, it was hard to get anything started! But hopefully once it GOT started, things would flow nicely. ...Hopefully.

Once everyone else had approached the van, she started loading their luggage into the vehicle as well, leaving a slightly confused taxi driver wondering how he should help. It just felt good to be moving around again, and Gayle wasn't sure how well she would do in a cramped taxi. Maybe she could roll down the window and stick her head out it, like a dog. But maybe not with her tongue hanging out. That would be kind of gross. Dogs looked cute when they did that...but probably not Gayle.

When appraching Tig's luggage, she hesitated, a serious look growing on her face. "You know....You might want to take a taxi of your own, Tig." But the slight grin that twitched on her lips indicated her teasing...Though perhaps she WAS being serious. Tig did have a lot of stuff. "Heck, maybe we should just call a limo." The grin finally broke through on her face and she giggled a bit, finding her own joke a little funny. What a dork.

"Well? Let's get goin!" ...Gayle was always trying to 'get goin'.