Dr. Simon O'Neill ([personal profile] protagonized) wrote in [community profile] undergrounds2015-10-09 10:41 am

#notallshapeshifters

Dates: October 6 and 8.
What: Simon tries to keep his head down.
[ooc: This is a completely open post! Come torment him.]

Covent Garden - Late Evening

Starbucks closed at ten most evenings, and given Simon's class schedule he tended to work closing shifts. That suited him just fine. During peak tourist season it tended to be crowded late at night, but weeknights were almost pleasant now that they were well into October. Tonight, the shop was almost deserted, save for a table of Korean tourists off in a corner, and they'd been nursing their drinks and chatting for over an hour now. Simon was thoroughly bored. He snuck a peek at the phone he'd secreted away in his apron pocket: 21:22. Only forty more minutes until he could kick them out and start closing up shop. Only an hour and a half until he could go home and start drafting that Craigslist ad for a new flatmate.

Only eight hours until he had to wake up and be back in the lab.

He sighed and went back to watching the door, hoping no one else came in.


Redbright Institute - Mid-morning

Simon could have been doing any number of things right now--first and foremost among them being sleeping--but for some reason he found himself drawn to Redbright Institute. His feelings about the place were ambivalent at best; sure, they'd helped him through a particularly tough time in his life, but he still found the place intensely weird and a bit uncomfortable. All logic said that magic shouldn't exist outside of fantasy novels and Disney films, and yet here it was. In London.

He strolled through the library, looking for volumes on shapeshifting. He knew there was plenty of lore about people with his particular condition going back centuries, but what he wanted was something that treated the subject a little more objectively. He needed a history.

Simon paused at a likely volume. Maybe this one, finally, contained the answers he was looking for.
constantprisoner: (respectable)

[personal profile] constantprisoner 2015-10-29 02:57 am (UTC)(link)
That's quite a bit different, Sirius reflects, since by that point in his life shifters were practically all he knew. He was never going to stop learning that the world was bigger than he was.

"Sort of yes, sort of no. I've connections with them but I wouldn't say I'm formally involved. Bit of a long story." He was reluctant to completely throw his lot in with them, but being friendly was better than the alternative.

"I'm Sirius." He offers his hand.
constantprisoner: (respectable)

[personal profile] constantprisoner 2015-11-01 01:57 am (UTC)(link)
"Indeed, although I don't think my parents knew that when they named me."

Stars just happened to run in the family.

Sirius regards Simon closely. It's an interesting way to look at it, one he'd never really considered. Being a shapeshifter had always just been a natural thing to him, although he supposed that was partly due to his family's influence.

"No, I suppose not. You're more likely to find them around Hillingdon. It's a bit insular that way. I'll answer as best as I can, although my information might be a bit outdated. I've been away due to various circumstances."
constantprisoner: (slightly off)

[personal profile] constantprisoner 2015-11-02 05:12 am (UTC)(link)
"Depends. Hillingdon's more all sorts these days, rather than an exclusive club or anything like that, at least, when it comes to the Hunters. Shifters...yeah, they might be harder to deal with."

He hadn't really poked around that particular branch, largely expecting that his name was mud there thanks to his family. While Sirius didn't mind a little risk, that wasn't as far as he was willing to go.

"Thanks. 'fraid I don't have a phone but I'll hang onto it none-the-less."
constantprisoner: (respectable)

[personal profile] constantprisoner 2015-11-05 06:12 am (UTC)(link)
Sirius gives a sympathetic nod. He can think of a few shifters he knows who might pull a similar stunt.

"I'm sorry about that. Shifter communities tend to be rather insular, and people tend to forget that not everyone has that benefit. Leads to a lot of not-great thinking. I eventually ran away because my family thought like that."

One of the few decisions in his life that he can honestly say he doesn't regret.

"I'd be happy to help you out as best I can, Simon. Really."