Not Quite A Home Away from Home

[watchfulcub13]

Date: March 6th, 2009
Time Frame: 10 am
Place: A motel in Newark
Status: Open

After leaving BPRD headquarters, Hazel Greene had headed straight for the nearest motel. She needed sleep, as she hadn't managed to get any at HQ, and she didn't care where she slept as long as she managed to do it without passing out from exhaustion on the bus. The only motel with any vacancy, however, had been a rather dirty little backalley place that had probably just started taking credit cards and still preferred cash. Up front, because they were used to people skipping out in the middle of the night. She'd shelled out thirty bucks for a dingy little bedroom with a shabbily-made bed and a toilet minus the seat, and had gone to bed right away. When she rolled out of bed at about nine-thirty, she felt much better, and wandered out of the room to see what she could find.

At one in the morning, the motel had seemed pretty dingy and awful. Now, in the light of day, dingy didn't really begin to describe the shabby quality that the little building possessed. Still, it beat having to deal with the poltergeist at HQ, Hazy happily noted as she trotted down the stairs and into the small, dark dining room/bar. She approached the counter without hesitation and asked if she could look at a menu. The man standing behind the long, badly scuffed bar slid a sheet of greasy, laminated paper to her, and from the short list, the BPRD agent selected boiled eggs, white toast, and a glass of orange juice. Not a particularly substantial breakfast, but packed with vitamin C and protein. Hazy was a sucker for protein.

While she was waiting for her food to arrive, she wondered to herself just how many people had retreated from the BPRD when the announcement was made that a poltergeist had taken up residence in the building.

[Sister Angeleanna]

From the relatively empty street, three black sedans pulled into the parking lot of the hotel and parked simultaneously. Behind the tinted window, several men and women in black suits sat stoically before the back seat door opened ominously and a solidly built man stepped out, his black hair neatly combed back and a pair sunglasses sat perched on his pointed nose. In his hands he held a folder and a wooden case and tugged on the edge of his jacket to smooth away unseen wrinkles before he stepped aside to let another figure slid out. Big black boots smacked the pavement and Sister Angel stood up with a quick shake of her habit and smiled toothily at the man. Tucked against her side, she lovingly carried her bible and a black binder.

“Thank you kindly, Agent Loam.”

“Not a problem ma’am,” the man replied cheerfully, breaking the stoic façade. “Your case?”

“I don’t think I’ll need it here. I trust your men to keep an eye on it?”

“Yes ma’am. Anything else I can do for you?”

Angel glanced around her, noting the second agent that exited another vehicle and slowly made his way towards them. “No, I don’t believe so. Thank you. You have been more than gracious in help. I believe this is our last stop, so if you gentlemen would care for a cup of coffee-”

“No thank you ma’am,” Loam interrupted gently. “Agent Pete –” he paused to look at the younger agent. “- will accompany you. We have two agents that are needed at the bureau. A car will remain here to take you back to the hotel with the others. Communications will be sparse but we will update you as soon as the mess has been cleared.”

The nun tipped her head and greeted Pete with another smile. “All right. Take good care of yourselves and keep safe.” She watched the agent wordlessly hand her case off to agent Pete and slipped back into the back seat. She turned away as the cars backed out and faced her companion. “Shall we?”

At his nod, Sister Angel took lead towards the front office and a quick conversation sent her over to the dinner area of the building. With Pete trailing behind her, the nun entered the relatively quiet room and was greeted the familiar smell of eggs and coffee. To the far left a jukebox quietly scratched to Elvis Presley while on the opposite wall, a morning talk show droned on. She spotted a lone figure at the bar and crossed the room before gently sliding into the seat next to Hazel. “Good morning Ms. Greene,” she chirped and set the binder and bible on the counter in front of her. “Beautiful morning."

[watchfulcub13]

The glass that held her orange juice was covered in a thin layer of film that she was sure wasn't pulp, and that she was sure wasn't supposed to be there. Regardless, Hazy lifted the glass to her lips and took a swallow. It was slightly soured, though whether it was by the acid in the juice or by the film on the glass, she wasn't sure. And to be perfectly honest, she didn't really care.

Her eggs were prepared improperly, too. The shell had ripped off normally, but beneath, the white was still runny. She took a bite, and the snotty egg dripped onto her chin. Gross, she thought. But she bit into the eggs again, this time taking a bit out of the still-runny yolk. She picked up the napkin, which also seemed to be plagued by a greasy film, and ran it over her chin. She then picked up a piece of toast and took a bite of it. It was soggy. Fabulous; this day was going to be great, wasn't it?

“Good morning Ms. Greene,” a voice said, and Hazy closed her eyes. And it had just gotten better. She turned to look as a nun, and Bureau member, sat down next to her. It was Sister Angeleanna. “Beautiful morning." Hazy nodded. It wasn't, really, but she wasn't one to disagree with a nun. Not that she had a problem with the good Sister; in fact, they'd rarely had any interaction prior to this. She just hadn't been expecting to run into any Bureau members at this particular hotel. It wasn't exactly a place that civilized people should be turning up.

"It certainly is, Sister. How are you today?" She glanced over at the woman's bible and binder and tilted her head to the side. "Is this a social visit, or d'you have business in this neighborhood?"

[Sister Angeleanna]

Twisting a couple of times in the cafe seat, it squeaked like a dying bird as the nun leaned forward to rest her folded hands on the edge of the counter and over the folder. She nodded her head the bureau agent that had accompanied her but he remained standing, though respectfully a few feet away. At Hazel’s reply, she sighed and smiled. “Quite well, thank you kindly for asking.” She paused to look at the breakfast of chaos that had adorned the younger woman’s plate and clucked her tongue. “A little bit of both, I offered my services this morning to round up a few stragglers. It seems in the rush of last night, not everyone found their way to the same hotel.”

If you’d like, after breakfast of course, come with Agent Pete and I to the – oh, what was it called?”

Pete looked over his shoulder, “Ramada Inn.”

“Thank you, the Ramada Inn a few blocks down. Quite a few of us found a place there. My previous roommate, a wonderful woman by the name of Agent Slate had to return to the bureau early this morning, freeing up a bed. Though I believe the uninvited houseguest problem may be solved before the day is out, we might actually be given an assignment before then. “ The nun looked up as a waitress came sailing by to toss a menu at the new occupant and continued on to the kitchen without looking back.

“Well,” Angel leaned back and rested a boot on the foot rest, rocking her heel. “Lets not worry about work so early. Please, enjoy your breakfast.” She raised a hand as if meant to rest it on Hazel’s arm but gave a little wave instead. “Did you sleep well?”

[watchfulcub13]

Okay, not that Hazy was complaining, because she'd give anything to get out of this ratty hole that the managers had decided to call a hotel, but how had Sister Angel even known where she was? She hadn't told anybody where she was going, and she honestly hadn't expected anyone to just turn up. As far as she knew, she wasn't wearing a tracking device, either. She shrugged, though, and finished off her eggs. Any BPRD agent who was willing to rescue her from this dingy little spot was allowed a miracle or two.

She finished chewing through the soggy toast and swallowed down a few gulps of the sour orange juice before answering the sister's question. "Fine thanks. I mean, as well as can be expected in a place I'm not used to. I guess I missed the office a little bit." She offered her companion a smile before snatching at the sleeve of a waitress as she strolled past with her nose in the air. "Can I have a glass of ice water?" The waitress shot her an irritated glance, but filled a glass with ice and then used the bar tap to dispense water into it. She slid it down the bar quickly, and then vanished again. Hazy shook her head and lifted up the glass to take a sip. It wasn't that bad, really.

She raised the glass to the sister. "Finally found something here worth having," she said with a grin. Suddenly remembering that she hadn't asked the sister how she had slept, she set the glass down and offered her an apologetic glance. "I'm sorry, Sister. How did you sleep last n ight?"