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Standing in the center of the foyer, Caoimhe could not decide what to do. Part of her wanted to drop Addie on the floor -- hard. Another part wanted to make an Addie-frisbee. And yet another hidden part wanted to cuddle her and tell her everything would be all right. The confliction left the teenage Fa'e sputtering the first syllables of a series of curse words.

And then the thing bit her.

Caoimhe made a sound akin to a cat being run over by a steamroller, involuntarily releasing her grasp on the toddler. "It bit me!" she said, confusion and rage sharing space in her eyes. This was her party -- and here was this little piece of tar unwrapping her gifts, eating her doughnuts, and biting her! Unacceptable, totally unacceptable.

It was hard enough for Caoi to be near kids, and now -- here she was -- manhandling one. It made her stomach turn, and so she turned her back to the toddler, trying to steady her nerves. Something was making the girl feel... loopy. In fact, all those in attendance might notice a certain lightness of the head, a creeping euphoria, as the mist drew across the outer deck and the pool and began a steady crawl into the beach house. Mist tickled Caoimhe's ankles, but she was only half aware of it. She could hear Sati shouting at her, and she recognized the maternal pain in her voice.

"You'd better hope this doesn't get..." another swell of mist "...in...fected. Infected!" Her words were directed at Sati, but they were aimless, meandering. Was this toddler toxic? Did she have a venomous bite? Caoimhe was trying to contemplate all the things she would regret if she died now, all the foods she never ate, and when she looked down to demand an answer from Addie herself, she could barely see the toddler through the mist.

The mist that had crawled towards them quickly became a seeping cloud that filled the entire space, even the area around the pool and the sandy shore. The guardians upstairs would see none of this however; they would find themselves lulled into a most sudden sleep. The seeping mist made visibility rough, and if a Fa'e tried to leave the house, she or he would find all the doors and windows sealed and impossible to break. And should a Fa'e try to exit via the beach, she or he would find themselves walking for ages in a looping panorama. Something was certainly amiss.

Caoimhe blinked hard, several times. W-w-what was happening? She felt a creeping chill inching up her spine, a darkness hovering in the back of her mind, but she could not open that door to unleash the understanding. Instead, she blamed Addie. "Okay, someone turn the kid off -- okay? Just... whatever, I didn't mean to hurt her just... make her stop misting up my party!" Goddamn, even the toddler had cool sparkly powers. Caoi didn't have any of that. But okay -- joke's over. Knock of the mist cloud. For a moment, the teenage Fa'e wondered if this was all an elaborate diversion for Addie to steal more presents, but the lump in her throat kept her from voicing those concerns -- and even more concerning, Caoimhe began to wish that that was just what it was.

Dustin didn't know why Caoimhe was whining about the mist. It felt pretty good to him. Not quite refreshing, but cheering! The child giggled under his breath as he signed off on the Dude's napkin, riding off of the weak high brought on by the approaching fog.

Once it got thick enough that Dusty couldn't see much in front of him, however, he began to feel less relaxed about it. "Hey, somebody turn off the fog machine! That's enough already!" he called out, chuckling more weakly. He took a step back from the table, and already the Dude was nearly vanished from sight in the thickening fog. A glimmer of suspicion occurred to the child - could it be the stranger's fault, whatever was going on with this mist? Maybe he shouldn't have been so eager to sign up for whatever adventure he'd been peddling....

Airi's messenger nodded at the recovered digits and neatly crumpled the napkin into his pocket, not really paying attention as most of his focus at the time was on the crazy child abuser girl. Wow, the gray chick had no controls whatsoever and the manners of a troll! The Dude had made a few steps towards the poor black baby dangling in her arms, to try and rescue the child from the teenager's clutches when he was cut of by the kid's fuming mother. Phew to that. Glad that the kiddo was under protection and the gray chick was being properly scolded he finally paid attention to the sudden darkness and the strange fog. Considering all the wonders of this party, a fog machine wouldn't have been all that surprising, however it was usually followed by new age music of some kind, at least in Dude's experience. Feeling slightly woozy, but no at all unnerved by his sudden euphoria, the Dude leaned onto the person next to him and uttered: "Wow, what did you guys spike the food with? Trippy ..."

"She bit me," Caoimhe said, vaguely making out the shape of Sati taking the toddler away. Whatever. It was just as well. Who was this chick pointing fingers at anyway? She'd been the one to neglect to pay attention to the kid in the first place. "Maybe you should've been watching her more closely. You're lucky she didn't fall in the pool!" Or get throw in... The girl didn't have time to pick a fight -- not right now. She was feeling pulled in every direction, as if her bones were sliding around in her skin.

Whatever the others were feeling, Caoimhe felt it a bit stronger -- and it was familiar. The mist tasty salty... like briny sea air. And if anyone listened closely, they would hear the bass thrum of a foghorn in the distance. Wanting to get away from the angry mother and toddler, Caoi staggered blindly forward, colliding head first with the nearest thing -- it was furry. With hard stuff. Oh. Dustin.

"Sorry, Dusty," she said, picking herself up off the deerkitten. Of course, doing so only made her stumble backward -- right into the Dude. Awkward, she did not know him as well, and feeling her hands making contact with his chest made the girl suddenly terrified, as if the sweeping fog were not enough. "Gahumpfh!" she stammered, falling forward once more.

Her hands made contact with the floor... and then something... wet? Did the evil toddler piss herself? Caoimhe fumbled around, feeling the object until she realized it was a shoe -- a boot actually. A soaked boot that seemed to have algae and barnacles growing on it. And god -- whoever was wearing these smelled. Slowly, all of the Fa'e would notice more bodies in the crowd -- bodies that seemed to have appeared out of thin air. The fog rolled in so thickly that the features of these people would not be visible, just the rough outline, and the pervading smell. The entire room stunk of dead fish and algae and raw oysters. If a Fa'e reached out to touch these creatures, they might feel long, viscous strands of hair, rubbery, rough skin, barnacles, and hard patches of sun-baked flesh.

"Who am I touching?" Caoimhe said at last, leaving her webbed fingers on the toe of the shoe. "Is this someone's idea of a birthday gift? Drown my party in fog and then sneak in!" Her words slurred at the end, the bounce of her Celtic accent falling in lazy rolls.

Then a voice, garbled by water, choked like a wheezing fish over syllables that, though muddled, sounded distinctly like Caoimhe's own: "Ah, lookee dah tiny weemin -- dis fish out troo da water. Bin looking fir ya. Sut ydych chi?" The figure leaned down until he was face-to-face with the grey-blue girl, his breath reeking of detritus and raw eggs. "Bin a long time spint wandren, looking fir you weeminfolk. An you ev'n gaddered ot'ers fir me freends, eh?"

The various bodies across the room inched closer to the Fa'e they were near -- each male Fa'e would find someone bearing a female-esque shape near him, each female would find a male. One female standing near Sei extended a long, thick-nailed finger to the boys cheek. "Yis, you 'ave dah looks, don't ya? I 'ill show ya me citee undar dah waves. Make ya me troo luff!" She cackled with laughter, and it came out like the crying of gulls. The male by Caoimhe raised a hand, silencing the female. It appeared as though he wanted her to wait a moment -- but for what? No one could be sure.

On the ground, Caoimhe was shaken. Every bit of fight and will slipped out of her like a final breath. She had never been so scared in all of her life, not even when she was on the brink of death time after time in Ararnorn. No, this fear was deeper than that; it rang all the way down to the muscles of her heart -- and then there was the other smell. Blood, a familiar blood? Was that possible? She could smell it all over the thing that stood in front of her, and it made her imagine a room of slaughter, of all those that she loved dying and bleeding on the ground.

The male before her put his finger under Caoimhe's chin and lifted it. She slammed her eyes shut, refusing to look at him. She did not know why. "Ay, now-now, look een me eyes, you silly weemin. Let me see dag tings dat dis 'eart o' yours is 'olding." The strange man waved a hand in the air, and every intruder leaned in toward their Fa'e, fighting for eye contact. In the euphoric fog, it would be hard for anyone to avoid the gaze. For a moment, the stench and fear would subside in each Fa'e, as if someone were laying a cool hand over their forehead, saying that everything would be all right, that they just needed to calm down and open their eyes and look... just look here.

And once they looked, they would find another person altogether standing in front of them.

Door Three

Silver snarled and growled as people started appearing, backing up towards the other fae. As the misty figure leaned in towards him, trying to do...who knows what, he exploded into action, mouth opening and lunging forward to attempt to sink his teeth into her throat, claws going for her stomach.

Door Two

...W... What the hell ?!?

What was happening ? The blonde had no damn idea. He hadn't been keeping attention. It looked like there was a problem in between the birthday girl and some other people he didn't know, and he hadn't really been willing to drag himself in the fray.

But now.... Now he had no damn idea. One second, Mik and Dusty had been right there, but now... now they were gone.

And that voice... said to look. It seemed like a very bad idea. His instincts kicked in, and his orbs raised to form a shield in front of himself, and hopefully Mik and Dusty if they were still right there... A few crackle of energy and the usually transparent mass became an opaque black.... But not before he spotted Caoihme on the ground.

He had to go help her ! It did not matter that he had never met her before now. She was in trouble. He had to go help her

With his shield still intact and unable to see whatever those men had wanted him to see, he tried to wriggle his way out of the corner he'd been backed to and head toward where he had seen the girl. "Caoihme !"

The female shape standing in front of Silver let out a dissatisfied noise, shifting to the side. Her movement was bulky however, and she was a bit slow. He caught the panel of her heavy jacket with a claw, ripping through it and drawing long gashes across her arm. The female hissed and drew close to him, spitting a powder in his face.

Silver must roll to determine the effects of the powder.


Addie was much braver and much stronger than she realized. The nearest male underestimated the toddler. He was not prepared at all for her little outburst. He had just begun to laugh at her urination -- ready to tease the toddler -- but her strong words made him jump. The towering figure stumbled backward, reaching out a gnarled hand to grasp the nearest structure. Unfortunately, it was a tall lamp. Staggering farther and farther, the male fell into the hot tub, dragging the lamp with him. Electricity rocked the small tub, and with a small pop! the hulking male figure was reduced to an unidentifiable green fish -- floating dead in the hot tub. The death of one of their own caused a murmur in the crowd, and the fog thinned -- still too thick to navigate well but clear enough to make out faces above the neck. Some of the remaining intruders eyed Addie warily, each contemplating who should attempt to stare down the toddler next. The largest male in the room began to slowly move toward her, eyes clear as beams.

Information on Addie's roll may be found at the end of Sati's response.


The female tracking Sei was not happy to be ignored. She wanted to take a husband home with her that night, an attractive human to preserve her own beauty. If not, she'd have to marry one of her own, and all her beauty would be sucked away. No, she would not be deterred. Slinking toward him, she lifted her chin, letting algae soaked strands slip away to reveal the smooth purple hue of her skin. If not for the haunted, hollow look in her glowing green eyes, she might be beautiful. "Lookee me 'n I'll geeve ya da 'ole o' dee treesures," she crooned, wedging herself between Sei and Caoimhe. She wouldn't risk touching one of those strange orbs; she had more sense than that. Instead, her fingers worked magic in the air, which she aimed straight at Sei. The glimmering light arced forward toward his forehead.

Sei must roll to determine the success of his defense and his efforts to approach Caoimhe.


Sati was not as fortunate as her daughter. The male who sought her gaze snatched his hand forward, tightening it around her throat. He took the opportunity of her daughter's distraction to get the best of the formerly powerful Fa'e. Tugging at her neck, he forced her head level with his and stared deeply into her eyes. "Weeminfolk... e'er distraycted wit dah cheeldren," he said, voice low and full of contempt. His beady green eyes bore down onto hers, and Sati would feel her mind being invaded -- but what for?

Sati must roll to prevent the success of this action.
Addie can either roll to protect her mother or to protect herself.







On the floor, Caoimhe could feel those around her, both the Fa'e and the new presence of darkness. She heard people trying to help her, each approach, each word, each outstretched hand. But she could do nothing. The girl was shaking from head to toe, chest tightening and releasing in hurried gasps. She was paralyzed in such a way that she had never been before, and she had no reason to explain her terror. The male above her grinned, relishing each quiver of her shoulders. "Ah, an' so I see ya 'membah me. Dun wanna look a' me eyes, eh?" He dragged a finger along her chin, willing her to look. "Why dun ya tell deese peyple who we be?" Caoimhe whimpered, an unnatural sound coming from the typically steadfast girl. "Aw, c'mon, me bonnie weemin. Tink 'ard, tink back ta dah peyson ya were... dah life ya once 'had... I 'membah ya. I 'membah all ya -- an' dah way your pelts shine on me boats..." He drew closer, and Caoimhe felt the need to vomit.

This time she couldn't fight it.

She retched onto the smooth stone, keeping her eyes squeezed tight. A voice that felt like her own said, "Finkfolk. You're... Finfolk." The words were the only bravery the girl had in her. She remained frozen in place, inches from her own vomit, dedicating every part of her strength to keeping her eyes shut, all the while wishing her guardian were there.