[Lighthouse]

"Honey child a woman has to retain some secrets. As much as I do adore the ballet what is our plan there? I can't project astrally without attracting attention and we can't see the entrance from there...I thought we were waiting for them to close and try to catch someone as they leave. Then try to use our feminine wiles on the staff and if that fails use magic." said Mother.

[Mercy Merchant]

Tanya nods at Mother.  That was the plan, but it seems that no one is on the premises right now.  Could still be people working in the secret area, though.  My play for the evening was to sit through the recital then see what the building looks like after dark.  There may be someone leaving the building at night and we can revert to the original plan.  Otherwise, I think it will be tomorrow before we can get inside for a look.  My idea, anyway.  Believe me, I am all ears for an alternate plan."

[obidancer]

With the vehicles in the garage, I do suspect there are people in the subterranean zone. I will stand watch to see if anyone comes out. I'm also curious to see where the watchers  are coming from and when. They usual exist for a few hours. Someone will have to recreate a ritual every day. Curious to see if the caster comes on site, or send them here.

[Aria]

Requiem listened to the ongoing planning, offering little at the moment, until...

"I have a discrete little drone that could be planted to record a view of the entrance while we're away.  With the wifi deactivated it should remain undetected and can be retrieved later.  Maybe one of you has a similar device we could plant to give us further view points?"

[skulldixon]

Well, if anyone is able to get a look at the licence plate on the car - when one leaves the garage, maybe I can tracking them down through the DMV. In the meanwhile I'll be in a nearby cafe -  I have sent my spyfly to watch from one of the trees across from the building and will monitor from the comfort of a soycaf expresso., Kimuho says through his commlink.

Sitting down at a table at the cafe he sets himself, bring up several AR screens, only one, a small one, that links to the drone. The rest are help portray himself as a customer who is working on a personal project. The other AR screens have art projects, all in various stages to the design process. While sipping his coffee, he uses his AR Gloves shapes, warps, and colors slowly, all awhile pay more attention to the smaller screen and the target of their quarry.

[Mercy Merchant]

Tanya mentally counts off.  "OK.  So far it seems it is Requiem, Mother, and me for the ballet and a bit of snooping afterwards.  Kumiho is scouting with a drone.  That leaves Kachina.  Will you join the three of us or do you have a different plan?"

[Jayde Moon]

[Sunday, 207505121847L]

Sunday evening in the park on a cool Spring day.  The spirits are smiling on the privileged families of Bellevue and the sky is only sparsely populated by fluffy silver clouds, their light dulling as the evening fast approaches.  Several families have entered, many bringing plush lawn furniture, coolers, and not a few small cooking grills for the event.  Girls in tutus as young as two, pushed to dance after their first steps, mill about with older girls of varying size, shape, and ability.  Many of them practice pirouettes, brisé volé, and other maneuvers.

The mall to the north is still open, though many of the boutiques are nearing the time when they shut their doors.  The restaurants anticipate patronage after the show and signs indicate they remain open through dinner hours and beyond.  To the west, nothing indicates that there is anybody at Return Safe, though a quick astral scan shows that two Watcher Spirits are posted in a patrol.  It will be difficult to sneak past them, especially for someone with the gift of Sight, but not impossible.  Coordination will be absolutely necessary.

A few minutes before the show, the 'Mistress' calls the girls to the gazebo to prepare.

[skulldixon]

Kumiho sits at his table in the cafe, sipping his soylatte while watching the drone screen while also playing with a piece of art in AR. He spins the the piece, a grenade that looks like a cloud, checking for spots of imperfections. Once he is sure he has the piece where he needs it, he side swipes it away into a folder on his comm. Then he looks out the front window of the small cafe at the growing crowd of ballet goers. he nods to himself and then sends a message to the team

Commlink So I don't think we should wait a lot longer. If we can get in past the watcher spirits while the show across the street is going on it might be the best. I would hate to get in there and find out that the building is empty................................................... I keep getting this sinking suspicion that the building is just another decoy.

[Lighthouse]

"Though not a fan of the frontal assault I am already dressed for the party. Tanya isn't getting into places your specialty? Maybe we could sneak in?" said Mother.

[Mercy Merchant]

Tanya smiles, "Yes.  Getting into places is my specialty.  But I came here tonight for a look-see, not an entry."  She sends a text to the team as she takes Mother and Requiem by the arm and walks toward the location of the ballet recital. >>Team.  Tanya.  I would like to be a bit better prepared than I am just now before trying to get inside.  Clothing and equipment could make the difference between success and failure.  It is my opinion that we should stick to the original plan and just observe tonight.  Can anyone tell me about these Watcher Spirits?  Are they likely to be just alarms or can they hurt me?  Can they be bypassed or defeated?  Would I be able to remain concealed from them wearing a chameleon suit?  Please clue me in.  Kumiho, is there any way to determine the security aspects of the two buildings by looking at it on the matrix?<<

Tanya stops at the ticket booth and collects her three will-call tickets and goes with her two companions to find seats.  She makes an effort to walk around and introduce herself to some of the others, letting the proud parents point out their darlings in tutus.  It is easy for her to be interested, but she also stays alert for any displays of jewelry, marking those people as "interesting to know" before sharing comm codes and moving on.  Tanya has seen this ballet before, but only performed by professionals and it is refreshing to see how the younger people do it.  She recognizes talent and hard work and is appreciative of the efforts of the students, the teachers, and the parents.  When the ballet is finished, she makes a point of finding the school headmistress and offers 500 Nuyen as a small token of her regard for the work of the students.  "I know this is not much, but I hope it can help a little."

During the recital, she keeps in touch with Kumiho and Kachina, staying abreast of any developments at the target building.  Once the show is over, Tanya moves off slowly in the direction of the Return Safe buildings and tries to see if she can spot anything.  She then sends a note to the team, >>Any news or ideas?<<

[Lighthouse]

Mother glares at the crowd.
"Do you always give rich people's kids money to learn to do something they don't need to do? I know some kids in my neighborhood that could use that kind of money for food and clothing..." said Mother looking far away and shaking her head.
"to answer your questions 1. watchers spirits watch. They can tell someone else including another spirit to harm you. 2. They can be bypassed if you can see them only by hiding fully behind something when they look. Imagine people are like flashlights you have to block that light by getting behind an object or some other living thing. If we destroy the watchers that will cause alarms. A chameleon suit wouldn't help because your aura extends outside of it. So what's our plan? We come back tomorrow and hit them? During the  day or at night?" asked Mother.

[obidancer]

It would be foolish to enter without our best B&E asset not being fully equipped. Though I feel tonight could have been a good time, we'll wait till we're all ready for it.
Unless something shows up that will convince us to get in, tonight we will observe. I'm still curious to see when and how the Watchers are being switched. These entities can't stay created for more than a handful of hours. I want to see if the Mage comes on site or not.

[Mercy Merchant]

Tanya first looks shocked, then ashamed at Mother's words.  She puts a hand on her new friend's arm.  Her sincerity is real as she softly says "Mother.  I did not know.  I did not mean......."  She pauses, as if to make up her mind, then adds.  "Sometimes it is like I cannot help myself.  From your tone, I surmise that you look at these people and perhaps see those that have too much and are wasting it on ballet lessons and dance recitals, and other things.  Like you, I see the wealth here, but I look at these people differently.  There will be those here that remember my accent, my perfume, my looks, and my name.  Some of the husbands will remember the slight touch on the arm and some of the wives will remember the knowing look.  My donation was not given in private and some nearby will already have told another, in strict confidence of course, and so on and so on.  There is a good chance that some of these people are already sending matrix inquiries out to see just who I am and they will find a British noblewoman with a penchant for the arts who lives in quite the posh hotel and has a member's only pass to Hell at the Inferno.  I might get invitations to parties or dinners or romantic trysts.  After all, inviting a genuine member of British nobility to a function or a bed still means something on this side of the pond.  And it is all done with the purpose of getting into different houses and seeing what they have that I might be able to take from them."

"But I realize that I have been insensitive and I hope that you can accept my apology."

Tanya is a bit subdued for a while and walks in silence.  She digests the information about the spirits then opens a channel to the team.  >>Team.  Tanya.  OK, it seems that we have to bypass these watcher spirits as well as any matrix and physical security here.  Apparently it is possible for someone to observe the spirits and keep me informed of when they are looking away.  That can be extremely useful.  Is it possible to put up some sort of aura shield so that they cannot tell me from the surrounding area, as if I were hidden behind something solid?<<

[Lighthouse]

"I apologize I try to look respectable but I am not usually welcome in these circles due to my persuasion. Also being a rebel is hard on the manners. I didn't mean to cast aspersions on your business model." Mother said with a wink.
"If you ever want a tour of my neighborhood I will show you a different side of life...now back to business, I have not heard of anyway to hide someone's aura. Do we want to go in during the day or night tomorrow? I can try to influence a guard into thinking that we are meant to be there and if that doesn't work I can have a spirit possess him and he can give us a tour. It will only work until someone asks the guard what we are doing as the spirit might not be able to convince anyone he is the guard. I could run interference and talk to anyone who does ask what we are doing and even pull the same influence trick on them." said Mother.

[skulldixon]

Commlink" Ok. I'll hack back into the Return Safe LTD host and see what I can discover from their security camera systems. Maybe even pull a license number from the car(s) in the garage.".

Kumiho switches himself over to cold sim, slumping in his seat. A status message appears above his head in AR: