Stakeout [Mission]

Going on a mission wasn't really something Isaac had desired to do. He preferred his quiet, alone time with his gaming device or a good book, that was much more preferable than going somewhere he had never been and doing something he had never done with the possibility of injury. But something had drawn him to this mission and the idea of going on a stakeout kind of sounded fun. Perhaps he would have some time to read or play his game while they were out? That would be very nice. The mission was simple, stakeout big store locations in Halifax and try to learn who was stealing stuff. Find their hideout, get their name, be on their way. The person, or group, wasn't expecting them, so there wasn't any big reason to be secretive. They were just a couple of teens going to Halifax in Canada. Granted that didn't sound like the best vacation location, it was on a beach of some kind, though he had heard rumor that the dock smelled. Not a lovely thought, but his research had brought up some good locations for them to stakeout. Plus, it was really pretty and they would have all day to themselves since the person or people only ever robbed at night.

Isaac sat waiting in the courtyard, several minutes early, for his partner to arrive. He didn't know who it was, her name was unfamiliar but pretty much every name at Beata was unfamiliar. He knew general names, some faces, but mostly the students at Beata were nameless human beings with no real concern to him. Granted, there were moments when he wanted to stop and talk, make some friends or just have some fun. But he knew he would scare people off because they would see weird things, despite his mask and earplugs, so he avoided that as much as possible. His mask kept most of the scents in, but it wasn't perfect. He had worked a bit on controlling it since he had arrived, but there were still some leaks and he wanted to work longer before completely removing the mask and earplugs.

So there the boy sat, alone, with a single bag and a few books, hands wrapped around his game system, sitting on a concrete block around some plants, waiting. He had barely arrived and was turning on his game, figuring whoever was joining him would be late. He could be very wrong, but he assumed, with his knowledge of teenagers, they would be late. The flight was going to be seven hours long, probably more with how planes worked, and Isaac was prepared. They had to get up kind of early, granted eight wasn't early it was earlier than Isaac liked, so that they could be there by five or six (Halifax was two hours ahead of them) and get settled, get food and maybe rest. It was preferable to get this over with as quickly as possible and starting out the night they arrived was reasonable. Halifax was a big city, finding the right location on the first try was slim.

So with his blonde-ish hair tucked behind his ears, eyes focused on the small screen before him, Isaac waited for his partner by playing a small game. Hopefully whoever it was was nice and quiet. That would make this so much easier. If they were at least nice, he would live. If they were just quiet, that was okay. But the ultimate partner would be both nice and quiet.

Erika had woken up dizzy the morning she was meant to leave with a boy called Isaac for Halifax. It was probably the thought pf flying that made her so reluctant. No, she did not have plane-fright, but knowing everything... really made you aware of how much things could just mess themselves up in a blink. While she was dressing up in a jacket and jeans, checking her luggage and arranging her glasses, she kept on repeating to herself all the ways a plane could crash. What a light and joyful start for the day.

She took a taxi to the airport, hurrying as much as she could, put, by her clock, she was already running late, and she hated it. When the car neared the airport, butterflies began raising into her stomach. This was her first mission, and she had figured having super intelligence could prove useful on a steakout. But what if she messed up. She shrugged as she got out of the taxi, the driver lending her her luggage while she paid him begore he left, muttering anout runaway teenagers under his breath. Really.

She took a few shy steps, scanning the courtyard. It was early, so hopefully she could find her partner without much complication. When she caught sight of him, she willed herself not to widen her eyes. The boy seemed normal. Well, aside from wearing a mask and headphones. Weird. she thought but, oh well, partners were partners. She advanced towards him until they were close enough to speak without shouting at each other. She smiled awkwardly.
"Hey, I'm Erika... Suppose you already knew but, ah..." she ended awkwardly. "Erm... sorry for being late." she added.

Airports were super amazing. Isaac had always admired the busy atmosphere of an airport, despite all the busy people bustling around, they were hubs for transport, much like train stations. He personally preferred train stations, they were rustic and fun in an old timey sense. They had so much character to them, air ports were similar and came in close second as one of his favorite locations to sit around at. Granted he preferred quiet without people, he just loved looking at people and seeing them in action. They were so interesting, he just wished his gift didn't scare them off that much. If only it was more like when he had first discovered his gift. Then people would love him more. But instead he created the memories no one wanted to remember. Then they freaked out and avoided him, connecting him to the memories but not why. So he avoided people. Once he got his gift completely under control, he'd be the happiest person alive.

The trip to the airport was about as fun as the airport itself. He hadn't seen so many people and roads and cars in a couple of months. Beata was rather secluded except for Rosbury with it's quaint little streets compared to the big cities. It made him miss Japan, almost. But it was wider and more spacious, Japan was very space conscious and they attempted to squeeze as much into one location as possible. Sitting alone he waited, not terribly long, but enough that if felt like the girl was late when she showed up. He was in the middle of a simple part in his game, so pausing it was not a problem as she approached, looking frazzled and awkward. He already liked her.

"That's fine. Formal introductions are nice." Isaac responded, standing to find he wasn't much taller than her, despite her obviously small frame. "I'm Isaac." He said, his voice soft as he offered her a hand to shake. He rarely let himself be seen as friendly, but he figured if he acted less indifferent toward her they might be friends later in time. But not at the moment, he was still perfecting his gift. This was just a mission. "That's fine, I wasn't waiting long." He said with a smile, though she couldn't see it under the mask and his eyes didn't smile with his mouth.

"C'mon, let's get on the plane." He waved his hand in the direction of the airport entrance and grabbed his bag. Waiting to make sure she followed he headed inside, deep into the busy belly of the bustling beast. It was wide open and spacious, magnificent and tall. The ceiling was high above his head and Isaac couldn't help but stretch his neck to look right at it. There were skylights, letting in the morning light as they walked toward the bag check and their terminal. Isaac's bag was small enough he figured he'd just bring it on with him. Plus, it held the extra books he was going to read when he finished the one in his pocket. His jacket had big pockets. The airport was fairly busy, early leaves were the best ones to get sleep on the planes, so there were a lot of people ahead and behind them.

There wasn't a hitch for Isaac, getting through the checks before heading for the terminal. Before boarding he stopped and waited to make sure Erika was still behind him. He didn't want to lose her, though he was sure she was fine he didn't want to be rude.

Airports made Erika fairly anxious and sick. She didn't fancy it, and the general atmosphere was terrible for her. While outside it was chilly but at least you could think straight, in airports, she felt like she was freezing and her mind buzzing. She went to drop her bag quickly, before Isaac moved on, his bag to small, and they both passed quickly through the checks, no biggie. At least the crowds were quiet. It was six in the morning, to be fair, so Erika understood heir fairly depressed attitude.

When she and Isaac arrived for boarding, it wasn't that crowded. She found that he had been waiting for her, and she gave him a thankful smile before they both went through the bridge leading to the plane. She froze in front of the plane's door. Chilly air was breaking in from the tunnel's sides, making it even colder, and she could feel goosebumps mursting on her skin. She gulped and boarded the plane hastily, turning to wait for Issac.

"Well, this was smooth." she remarked, giving him a tentative smile. It wasn't as if she was scared of him, but his appeareance made her anxious. She wondered more and more what power he would have. Or maybe he had some dissgusting dissease on his face, and just liked to listen to music very much. Well, even without super intelligence, you knew that was just a lame guess.

Crowds were generally something Isaac didn't enjoy, along with loud noises which crowds often produced. But airports were majestic in their own way, even for the morning time with people bustling here and there, getting on their early flights. There were a few other people on the flight to Halifax, which was okay with Isaac, he didn't mind an airplane with a few more people on it. It was just like riding a bus or a train, and trains were a popular mode of transportation back in Japan. So the amount of people that followed them toward the Halifax plane was comfortable for Isaac. Crowds only made him uncomfortable due to their packed characteristics. He was fine with lots of people, but when he got crowded in, then it got a little uncomfortable.

Pausing to wait for Erika allowed a few people to pass ahead of him, though she wasn't far behind. She was rather delicate looking, he observed, as she approached him, giving him a look he assumed was thankful. He smiled back, forgetting again that she couldn't see him smile behind the mask. She passed by him and he followed her onto the plane, keeping pace just behind her. He stopped when she did, curious about the pause. His power leaked from various nooks and crannies on his body, mainly his mouth, nose, and ears, but occasionally from his fingers and toes. So he was covered rather tightly and was unable to feel the chilly, morning air like Erika. Luckily she continued to move and he didn't have to ask her what was wrong. They had made it onto the plane.

"Yep." He said, approaching the seat he was assigned, putting his bag into the baggage carrier. It was a bit of a stretch, he was below average height for his age and gender but he was still able to reach well enough to get it pushed in well. "Want some help?" He asked, offering to help her put her bag into the carrier. He had done this a lot, having been on planes several times in his life. Granted not one right after the other, but often enough to be used to it. It occurred to him then that she may not have been, though her comment suggested she had and just on a not so smooth trip. "Have you been on a plane before?" He asked, kind of curious. His headphones weren't playing any music, many people thought they were. Isaac had a hard enough time hearing people with them over his ears, with them on it would be impossible. But he didn't ever talk about his gift, not that often, and he hadn't noticed any weird looks from Erika, so he assumed it wasn't odd to her.

The next thing they did while they were on the plane was to get to their seats. They plane was fairly empty, which was a relief. She had planned to read on the plane, but now she only felt exhausted, so she allowed Isaac to put her bag up, thanking him while she sat down. They had taken a fairly big plane for the long trip, one of the huge ones in which you could watch movies on screens at the back of the seat in front of you, or have bottles of water stacked for you to drink and a pillow. It was good, y her point of view, and having such plane to not be crowded made it better. especially since she planned on doozing of at least a few hours.

"A plane? Oh, yes, I've been. But I don't like them very much." she answered his question blankly while she stared on the window. The sky had turned a cold blue, woven all over with cotton-like clouds. She placed a pillow at the back of her head and pulled out the book she had been keeping into her jacket. It was her 'emergency book'. She opened it and started reading, soetimes pausing over passages, staring at the book. "So, emm... what is your gift?" she asked him. She needed to find that out, so she could figure how to catch the thief, and she figured any power could be more usefull than hers, anyway.

The seats weren't too hard to find and soon they were standing next to theirs. There was only a small struggle as Isaac placed the bags above their heads, adding a small 'you're welcome' as Erika thanked him for handling her bag. The door wouldn't close at first, so while Erika answered his question he fiddled with it as best he could from his tiptoes on the ground. It kept clicking but as soon as he let go it would swing open slightly. That was very odd. He nodded along with her answer, huffing as he slammed it shut, testing to see if that would work, and it did. Brushing his hands off on himself as if he had done some dirty work he sat down next to Erika and leaned his head against the back of his seat.

"Ah. Where did you go the last time you were on a plane?" He realized, too late, that the answer was probably to Beata, since many students at Beata lived all over the place and driving wasn't always a great option. He watched as she pulled a book from her pocket, smiling slightly underneath his mask he moved his hands to grab his own book but froze when she asked him about his power. This, he knew, was bound to come up. With all the people he had run into at Beata, she was surprisingly the first to ask him what his gift was. Dropping his hands into his lap he stared at them, absently twiddling his thumbs. He didn't have to go into detail, he just had to tell her what it was.

"Um, I can create hallucinations in someone's mind. Not visible to anyone else around them. Using smells. Uh, what's your power?" He asked, turning slightly to her, almost hastily, as if looking very hard for a topic change so he didn't have to discuss it any longer. He didn't like that he scared people, it was frustrating that his gift had turned to that. His parents and some of the Beata staff had suggested it had to do with his emotions and the fact that he shut himself off from the world, but it had started before he shut himself off from everyone, so he was sure they were wrong. He just didn't know what changed whether they were happy hallucinations or bad ones. He just preferred to change the subject when the option was available.

As they spoke, the captain came over the loud speaker announcing that they would be taking off really soon. Isaac liked the lifting off part of the plane, the sensation of going up, of being pressed into his seat by an invisible hand. It was a good thing they were almost leaving, then they could reach Halifax and begin the search.

Erika's eyes scrolled quickly on the rows and rows or words that flowered into her book, her ears still keenly listening to Isaac's words. He seemed a pleasant sort of guy. At least wasn't one of those rich, flirty trash-bags that lives in her neighbourhood. He was cute, yes, she had to admit, but the oddness in his garments was something she should consider, for sure.

"Surely in the given moment you are remembering that most students come by plane to Beata." she smiled from her book, a weird smile that combined a faint mock with the actual coldness of the fact.
But her thin eyebrows shot up as he mentioned his power. Scent generation... Guess I can work with that... she tried to assure herself.

"Me?" Erika looked flustered dor a moment, raising her head from her book, a cold frown on her face as she fiddled with her glasses, almost staring through the boy completely. She was always anxious when someone asked of her power. "My power is super intelligence. No, my power doesn't help me cheat at maths." she added hastily, her emerald green eyes now fixed into his.

Part of Isaac wanted to know what she was reading, the other part of him really didn't care. She was talking to him like he was a normal human being and he was kind of enjoying it. Reading came secondary to his love of having conversations and the only reason he read was to enjoy the conversations between the characters of a book. And so that people around him avoided him, but he didn't really want that, it just seemed more convenient. Avoid people so they didn't see things that haunted them. Avoid people so they didn't become afraid of him. That was his routine. Avoid people, look indifferent, don't scare them. Perfect.

Turning a slight tint of pink he nodded, wondering if she could read minds or if she was just a thinker. Isaac was a thinker, he just needed time to think properly and thinking on the spot often messed his words up. "Uh, yeah. Is that the only time you've ever been on a plane?" Isaac asked, trying to divert the conversation away from how stupid he had sounded. He didn't like to sound stupid since he was fairly smart for someone so slow. He just, didn't always come off as such.

He figured she would have seen it coming, his asking about her power. That often happened when one person asked another about their gift. They got the question right back at them. It appeared that the mission had two people generally unwilling to discuss their gifts. Sure, manipulating and generating scents to create hallucinations wasn't actually a bad thing, it just wasn't very easy to handle. "Ah, I wasn't going to say that." He said softly, not sure if he should be offended or surprised that that was her first defensive comment. The plane began to level out as it headed on its course to Halifax, preparing itself to take the seven hours to get there.

Erika enjoyed talking to the boy. She didn't quite figure wh, but he seemed resserved, and possiby easy to fluster, which made her feel a lurch of showing-of her smarts, but she reminded herself it would be rude. And also, he needed his cooperation on this mission, or everything will fall appart. Every tiny bit of plane that rooted absently in her mind, every getaway in case of danger, every way to hide from the person they were following. Ha, super intellingence wasn't as useless as many thought, it had it's pay-offs.

She closed the books that she aws reading with a firm sound, like hitting wood with your palm. She lifted her bright, huge eyes and the corners of her mouth twitched as his next question. It was amusing, how he asked her so many questions about planes all of a sudden. She felt the urge to point that out, but she reserved herself to sighting. "Ok, you sure like planes a lot, like me, or you just want to avoid something. And to keep your diignity, I'll go with the first one." she smiled shortly, then her expression hardened in concentration.

"Ok, about our mission, we need to figure out how to find the guy." she said, firmly. They had to make some plans, which clearly involved her powers, but she was firmly set to not use them to the max, like she had done last time... Last time... she told herself, and felt a pit in her stomach for Ash. She missed him, but she clearly didn't want to show anyone that. "And let's make that quick, 'cause I'll really enjoy a nap." she added instead and yawned, leaning slightly to touch her head to Isaac's shoulder. Not a sign of love, but a cold gesture, to point out what she was reffering to.

This girl seemed pretty nice, a little odd, but who wasn't? Isaac found it interesting to talk to someone for once, granted he had had a few conversations since reaching Beata, this was the longest by far and they were going to be together for at least a day or two. That would be the longest he would have been alone with a single person for a long while. Actually, at all, really. Every moment of his life had been spent with two or more people or completely alone. So going on this mission with Erika was a new record for the quiet boy.

The way Erika closed her book surprised Isaac a little, he hadn't expected her to close it and she had basically slammed it shut. It made him jump slightly. Next she surprised him with her words. They were just a tad bit harsh and left Isaac flustered, opening and closing his mouth looking for words to say. No, he did not like planes enough to ask so many questions, but she was right about his trying to avoid something. He was avoiding the mention of his gift, but he was also curious about her history with planes and was simply trying to be polite.

Her next statement was short and to the point and Isaac was finding himself liking her company just a little less. At least she referred to the mission as theirs and not hers. If she had done that it would be as if she were calling him useless. Which, in this situation, was true. There would be no need to approach someone, the mission called for stealth and silence, simply observing things. That was something Isaac was good at and why he had signed up for this mission. But he had been joined by a girl with super intelligence and he suddenly felt less worthy of this mission. "Ah, right. Well, they've been targeting large stores for simple daily necessities. Nothing terribly expensive, but enough to be noticeable. The first move would be to decide which stores they might target." Isaac pulled the small book out of his jacket pocket, the one he had planned on reading on the way there.

Isaac sat tensed up as he opened it, wary of the now slightly scary girl on his shoulder. This was slightly frightening and oddly reminded him of shows with hostage situations. He turned carefully to the front cover and a slip of folded up paper slid out. "I made a list of all the big stores in Halifax and the ones they've already hit. They've hit most of them, and a couple of them twice, but not back to back." Isaac said this as he unfolded the paper and showed her the notes. It was a simple, bulleted list in small handwriting. He had boxed the stores already hit and put an X beside the ones hit twice. There were only two not boxed. "We have to decide which store they might hit next. Based on what has been taken from the stores, I don't think they'll hit either of these unmarked ones." He said, pointing to the ones he was talking about.

Erika wasn't surprised he got flustered by her words, which made her feel half concerned about their future team work, and half concerned about just her own picture. Maybe about their 'friendship', but she knew people didn't make friends just sitting in a plane together and waiting to get to Halifax to track down a pety thief. Well, of course that was the amaizing, 'touching', case in which characters made friends in book but, whatever. She wasn't a book character, and she knew what weird boys take when a girl hangs out with them too much. Hopefully, Isaac wasn't a weirdo. She jolted with half amusement half anger at herself at the thought.

She crooked her neck to peek at the notes the boy took out of his book. She taped her visor absently with one hand, bitting her lower lip as she scanned the piece of paper. They were ordinary stores, and not really related, making it even harder to figure out any connection, but at least put out a new question. She hurried to extract her backpack from the holder, clumsily making a few jumpes to reach it, until she managed to get it, slamming the holder door shut and hurrying to get back into her seat. Her eyes caught the window she was seated by, and she gulped as she saw they were soaring through clouds. She shook her head to make the thought leave her mind and set the papers down in her lap.

"These are notes over the thief's activity. And, from now on, we'll call them Barry. Goes shorter." she added, giving him a sideways look. "Alright, Barry's been stealing furniture, meaning lamps, electric stuff as well, the ones he could slip out with." she said, showing him the paper, where all sorts of images of object such as lamps, televisions, or other electric stuff were printed, next to a name of the store they had been taken out of. "The problem is, well, aside from being totally pointless, is that the cameras never caught him, nor there are any tracks to follow. No footprints, fingerprints, no nothing." she sighted, brushing her forehead with her palm.

"That gives us to conclusion." she spoke again, her eyes turning to look keenly into Issac's gold-brown. "Either our Barry can fly, which wouldn't explain why he isn't on any camera, either he can..." she said and frowned scratching the back of her neck. "I hate you, Barry..." she muttered under her breath.

Isaac wasn't sure how to react to this girl. One moment she was quiet, nice, and booky, and the next she seemed to almost be threatening him. If they didn't finish this discussion fast and she didn't get to nap, this was going to be one long plane ride and one long mission. But Isaac listened to what she said and began getting out what he knew. He had done quite a bit of research to make sure they knew exactly where they were going with this. They didn't want to be stuck in Halifax for longer than necessary and they certainly didn't want to be there when the culprit moved into another town, because he certainly couldn't steal from only Halifax for very long. So they needed to decide what to do and act quickly. But they were to only find his hiding spot and his name. Beata was probably going to organize another mission to accomplish the actual capturing of him. Hopefully Isaac would be helpful to that mission as well.

As he told Erika what he knew, he felt her watching over his shoulder as best she could and felt vaguely self conscious. She was just trying to get a better look, he kept telling himself as he spoke, getting out all the information he had. Hopefully he would be helpful to her, since she was all knowing and such. But she didn't seem to come off as such, more observant that smart. Granted, being observant often made one fairly smart, Isaac knew that well. He was more of an onlooker than anything.

Erika began adding her own input to the conversation, having done research herself. Isaac shrugged when she said they would call the thief (or thiefs) Barry. It was easier, she was right. He half glanced over at her papers just to see what was on them, but what she said seemed to be the most important. Nodding along with her he added on, "he's also been taking small food stuffs and power tools, including whole riding lawn mowers." That was one of the things that got Isaac. Barry took large objects that he couldn't possibly get out without being noticed. But he managed to do it all, and without being seen. Again Isaac nodded. "Yeah, and there were no signs of forced entry. Either someone let him in, or he got in using his power." Isaac said, preparing for his own speech once she had finished.

Isaac nodded, waiting a while for Erika to finish. When she had he began telling her what the rest of his research had turned up. "I looked up different gifts that would allow something so big to disappear without evidence. Some of the teachers were a bit of help as well. Barry could have had metal manipulation, which would explain no signs of forced entry and the ability to carry larger items out, by manipulating the vehicles in store. The only thing that doesn't explain is the cameras." Isaac began, the stuff he was speaking of coming solely from inside of his mind. He had memorized the most important clues. "Barry could have telekinesis, which would explain the moving large things and, possibly, the getting in. But still not the cameras." Continued Isaac. "There's also the possibility Barry isn't alone and there are others, but we won't know until we look." There was a moment of pause as he wracked his brain for the last possible solution to this problem.

"Oh, yeah, also, one of the teachers mentioned shadow manipulation. He would be able to travel inside the shadows, which would mean getting in without force, not being seen by the cameras, and being able to carry out large objects. If this is one person, that's the most likely answer. But if its multiple, it could be any combination of gifts." Isaac said, thinking hard about how many possibilities there were. This was why Beata didn't want them engaging the culprit(s). There was no telling how many there were or how dangerous they were. Once they knew more, then they would send in more students.

OOC: Mobile

Erika nodded at the information he added, liatening to it carefully. He was nice guy, she thought, smart but okay. She was okay with smart people, but she hated people who thought they were smarter than her. She won't let anyone do the. She shook her head slightly to wash away the thought. It was pointless to stray away, for she had enough distractions already. Catching Barry, reporting to Beata, this hude annoying flight... Ash. her mind whispered to her and she looked rowards the puffy clouds they were flying above, feeling homesick. Not really homesick, maybe Beata-sick. Or Ash-sick. her mind added, like a needle.

"Don't forget teleportation. He might have teleported in, but rhat doesn't explain why the cameras didn't catch him as..." she suddenly froze, her heart skipping a beat as she flung herslef, hugging Isaac tightly, enthusiasticaly. "What about a the cameras that have the stolen object in sight?" she hurried to say, her cheeks flustered and she gazed lonly and smiled at Isaac.

People who thought they were better than others annoyed Isaac as well. He didn't enjoy their constant confident attitude, since too much confidence often meant they considered only themselves important. Isaac preferred people with quiet confidence, enough that it was noticed, but not enough to be annoying. Otherwise it was just obnoxious. So he was kind of glad Erika was his partner here. She was smart, he could tell, but she wasn't spilling out important facts or even over using her gift to prove she was smarter than him. Which was nice, since he felt dumber after she had simply mentioned her gift.

"That's true. He could have easily gone in and out, but again the cameras and carrying things." Isaac said in the space between Erika's comment and her realization. Isaac gasped and tensed up as she grabbed him, aware of just how close she was by her heat radiating onto him. What was going on? Isaac was dead frozen, unsure what to do and whether or not he should move. Then she finally spoke up and his eyes widened. "Right, the camera might have caught something." He said, thinking five miles a minute. His mind was slow to produce ideas, that was just how it worked, but that was because it came up with every possibility to do so. "Alright, so how do we get to the camera feeds? We're only kids and they're not going to let us get ahold of them to help with the investigation." Missions at Beata were important, but it was impossible to keep gifted people a secret from the world if they went prancing around helping non-gifted people with their problems.