Moonlight Shenanigans [Finished]

[Hazel 'Hobbs' Yeung]

Okay, okay. She got the message. Bad experiences of bad situations, and if Jill didn't wanna talk about it Hobbs could respect that. Whatever it was, it was in the past. It was always in the past. In fact, she probably couldn't name a Hunter who didn't have some shit that they didn't want to mention. It felt better, at least, to know that Jill's concern came from her own issues instead of a desire to protect her. Hobbs was used to stares, questions, nicknames, jokes. But she hated pity. She always had. Even way back in school she'd hated people going easy on her. Now they just had a valid reason to.

Jill gave her a quick brief on her history, and it was more than Hobbs would have asked for. She could've just said that she didn't wanna talk about it and Hobbs would've been cool with that. She wasn't too interested to know detailed histories about everyone anyway, the basics were good to avoid an accidental faux-pas, but beyond that, Hobbs simply didn't care. She didn't want to listen to sob stories or have to be around when they got all uncomfortable about it. If they turned their life story into a limerick or something that'd be great.

"Alright, I'm not asking questions. If you're so worried about strangers jumping you I could give you a set of these-" she gestured to the shades "-in fact, have these ones." And she took them off again and tossed them in Jill's direction. She had plenty more back at the base, and it was about time she started circulating the stuff that would make Hunter's lives a hell of a lot easier. That's what she was there for, after all.
"So, what are these rumours people say about me? Are they any good?"

[Jillian Moore]

Jillian snatched the glasses up easily. She didn't put them on, however. She set them on top of her head, she'd use them on her way back home. Or rather, to the base on Memorial Island. She raised an eyebrow when Hobbs asked about the rumors. Why should a Hunter really worry about what others say about them? It was something that Jillian didn't approve of, worrying about the rumors that were spread about someone.

"Think about that question for a moment. You're called Hobbs. Because you're missing a leg. Hobbles, I assume was the original name, shortened of course. Hobbs, think about this. People think what they want to think about you. I'll tell you these rumors aren't any bit sensible. Most of them are stories about how you got hit by a car, got sick, or had it personally ripped off by a vamp or a wolf. None of them, I assume are true."

"You'd do better to not worry about what people are saying about you. There's no reason to think about it. Having such thoughts causes you to lose track of your goal. I think it's safe to assume that your goal is the same as mine. To erradicate the supernatural menace from New York, and eventually the world. However, as much as I'd like to believe that we will do it in our life time, I'm well aware it won't happen. But, I suppose we can set the events in motion."

"Maybe Commander would be wiser to turn the creatures against each other. That way we risk fewer lives and they will kill each other off for us. I doubt it would be hard. The fuckers hate each other enough already. All we need is one wolf to look wrong at a hot headed vamp. It could be simple. Should be..." Jillian scowled lightly. "Never mind. I'm rambling on about things we all already know. It just irritates me that we haven't already ended this shit. It's too easy."

[Hazel 'Hobbs' Yeung]

"Y'know, Hobbs could just be my last name," she said with a wry smile. "At least, that's probably what most people assume. But you're dead on with the 'hobbles' thing. What clued you in to the fact that it's just a nickname?"

And normally she didn't give a shit what people thought of her, but sometimes it was worth knowing either to have a laugh or to be aware of what silly, melodramatic antics people expected her to get into.

In university there had been half-serious jokes going around saying that she was a cyborg, because she was just too damn good at what she did. When Hobbs had found out she'd recorded a half hour session of desktop activity on her computer, doing things like checking emails, writing essays, finishing up projects, and then in the middle of the computer labs with her class she'd full-screened the video and watched them all freak out as she pretended to control the computer with technopathy.
In a nutshell, if Hobbs knew some of the stuff the others said about her she could use it for some really good pranks, or an offhand comment or two. Then laugh as their jaws dropped.

Got hit by a car? Dramatic, but commonplace. Got sick? Nah. Now, getting her leg ripped off by an immortal... she liked that one. She was now tempted to by a wall mounted wolf's head to claim that was that happened to the bastard who bit off her limb. That would go down a treat if she stuck it in the middle of the tech lab.

"It would be easier to set them on each other, but you know what half these people are like. They're all about the honour and nobility. 'Never attack an unarmed opponent', 'never shoot when the enemy's back is turned', that kind of bull crap. Sneaky underhanded tricks are not the soldier way, but we're not soldiers here."
Hobbs shrugged, straightened up, and stepped out of the children's play area. "Besides, I'm sure the vamps and weres have their own commanders who would expect this kind of thing. It's a basic warfare tactic. They'd probably be able to see it coming if we tried to trick or frame them. The only way would be to get them to think attacking the other was their idea, and that's not as easy as it sounds."

[Jillian Moore]

Jillian scowled and looked scathingly at Hobbs. She was talking as though Jillian knew nothing. Of course they had commanders of their own. Of course they knew what to expect. No one played fair in these sorts of wars. But, it couldn't possibly be hard to start a fight. Jillian looked away from Hobbs and swallowed back her anger for a moment. It was no way to make friends, snapping at them constantly.

"I'm not a child. I'm well aware of what these bastards are capable of. Doesn't mean that they think as much as we do. In my experience, werewolves tend to be as rough and tumble as their beast forms. And vampires lose their minds the moment they smell a little bit of blood," Jillian wrinkled her nose in disgust. Just talking about the creatures bothered her. "Though, with your technological skills, I'm sure we have something that they don't."

"From what I can tell, these glasses are the first step to putting us on the same level as them. We have not only weapons that can kill them, but now we are slowly gaining the senses to sense them as they do us. These glasses can tell me if a person is a vampire or not, and I assume a werewolf. Though I've been with the Hunters for a few months now, I still don't know all I ought. I rarely paid attention in the classes,"

"Hobbs, I see what you're doing here. I like it. If you ever need any help field testing, search me out. I'll probably be in the library," Jillian looked back at Hobbs, her face more an emotionless mask than anything. "I'm willing to risk anything in order for us to gain the upperhand. With your help, we will at least be put on level ground. And, that's all I ask. If it's money, I'll get it. If it's testing, I'll do it. If you need anything, I'm at your disposal."

[Hazel 'Hobbs' Yeung]

"Never said you were a child," Hobbs said, frowning as she stared off in the druggies' direction. "Just pointing out that things are tougher than that. They always are. Newly-turned werewolves and vampires tend to be beserkers. Too much strength and not enough experience, but some of those monsters are hundreds of years old. They're clever, and they learn restraint. You've gotta give them more credit than that."

Staring off into the distance, she picked something out of one of her back teeth with her pinky nail until Jill mentioned classes.
"They're doing classes now?" Hobbs asked, trying to imagine hunters sitting at desks in rows and taking notes on what the teacher was saying. It was difficult to picture. "I've never been to a hunting class. I just kinda learned on the job. What're they like? I can't imagine them giving out homework or anything."

And when Jill offered to help, Hobbs glanced down at her feet for a moment before looking back up.
"Thanks, Moore," Hobbs said, trying to be as humble as possible. Which was difficult, because what she did was pretty damn great and she knew it. "The techie never gets praise." Indeed, Hobbs wasn't much of an active Hunter. She could be backup in a team, the sniper waiting to strike, the one who sat in the van and stared at the surveillance screens, but she was never the person who went out, guns blazing, grappling with the monster itself. And she wouldn't be able to until she got a leg that worked properly. Until then she was restricted to sitting at the base, making things to make it easier for the others.
"As for trying stuff out, I've got some body armour that could do with testing, but making you wear it and shooting at you wouldn't be safe. There's also the earpieces that I can't test out on my own. Whenever you like you can visit me at Memorial Island; I'm usually hanging around there somewhere."

[Jillian Moore]

"Not exactly a class. I call it such. I've just been with younger Hunters and stopped by older Hunters to "learn" something about hunting," Jillian shrugged. She listened carefully to what Hobbs said. She nodded to what the other woman said. "Right. Well, when I'm not in the library, I'm on Memorial. I'll meet up with you for sure." Jillian muttered. Body armor and ear pieces. Honestly sounded like two things that she could try together.

"You also mentioned that you have some scent cover thing. We could probably try all of those out in one fell swoop. And, with any luck, kill a creature of the night all in one night. You said the sewers. If we plan it properly, there's no reason not to do it. I'll go in, armored and with the ear pieces. And that scent stuff. You can wear the glasses. I let the beast tear at me a bit, practice killing with my hands rather than a gun, and we call it quits once the thing is dead."

Jillian smiled. It sounded like a good idea. All of it. She got to kill, and help the Hunters inadvertently by helping Hobbs create new weapons. Though, the body armor was being tested. And, she couldn't help but wonder if it wasn't strong enough. However, the reasoning that Hobbs went through in deciding whether or not to shoot a gun at her in the armor could have been anything. It was entirely possible that Hobbs was a strong supporter of gun safety. That idea rested Jillian's fears.

"Hobbs, this is the beginning of a beautiful companionship," Jillian's smile seemed more a grimace. She offered her hand to the other woman and the smile seemed more friendly. "I help you, you help the Hunters. That's all I ask for. And, that's all I'll ever ask for."

[Hazel 'Hobbs' Yeung]

Moore was usually in the library? A place more suited to a student or professor. It wasn't really a Hunter's hangout. And what did Moore find to read up about when she was there? Was she researching the immortals? General libraries didn't have those kinds of books. What, then? History, art, philosophy? The beautiful blonde woman who'd been a (probably very successful, too) stripper in the past could probably have a secret love for knowledge. Yeah, Hobbs could picture it now; Moore bending over dusty old tomes, reading them by candlelight.

Hobbs chuckled. No doubt Jill expected her to have some state of the art suit lined up for use. But she didn't. Her fingers digging back into her pocket, Hobbs plucked out a cigarette, lit it up, inhaled deeply. How to explain this?
"Well, when I say 'body armour', I mean it in the loosest sense of the word," Hobbs said, with an uneasy smile. She didn't want Moore to get the wrong impression. "I mean, it'd be best suited for making into body armour, but right now it's nothing more than a foot by foot square of cloth. And when I say 'cloth' that's with artistic license too. It's more like..." Hobbs jammed the cigarette into her mouth with a pensive frown. "Leather? It's kinda like leather. Leather but with pockets. Like bubble wrap, but they tessellate, And each of these pockets is filled with a magnetorheological fluid, and iron particles suspended in silicone oil to stop them from rusting .So when an electromagnetic field is applied to it, the iron particles all realign and lock together into uniform position, making it rock hard. And invulnerable to immortal punches or bites."

She exhaled a gobful of smoke and shrugged, her arms open wide. "But the whole damn thing is so expensive that making full body suits would cost millions. I don't have that kind of funding. And unless you wanna go running around the sewers with a square foot of 'cloth'-" Hobbs made air quotes with her fingers, "-pinned to your front, it'd be best to leave that out for now."

She sniffed in the cool night air, shrugged. "But anyway, a hunting session with thermal glasses, earpieces, and scent masking spray is a whole lot better than what most are going out with right now. And if we go into the sewers that'll make us damn-near undetectable by immortal noses."

Beautiful friendship indeed. Even if they were going by an aesthetical instead of a metaphorical 'beauty' of friendship, they'd manage. Moore would have to pick up Hobbs' slack, though; you could hardly call Hobbs beautiful, even on a good day.
Hobbs took her hand and shook it. "I'd propose a toast but I left my booze at home."

[Jillian Moore]

Jillian smiled wryly as Hobbs spoke. She shook the woman's hand, a strong handshake. Of course, that made sense. That would be why it wasn't safe for shooting at. She wanted to laugh at herself for her misunderstanding. However, in her defense, Hobbs had left the armor topic rather unexplained. As their hands separated, she laughed. Booze. It had been a while since Jillian had allowed herself to drink. She didn't have much money, but she didn't need it. She never needed money to get what she wanted.

"You know what? I'm pretty sure there's a good bar somewhere around here. Finley's. I've heard a lot about it. And," Jillian gave her watch a passing glance and grinned. It was late, pushing into the next day. "At this time of the day, I'm pretty sure most of the men who'd give us any trouble are too wasted to even make trouble for themselves. So, Hobbs. Shall we toast properly?"

She knew it'd be too easy to get herself a drink. Jillian looked at Hobbs in the dark. It wouldn't be too hard to get her a drink either. So long as they didn't see her prosthetic. Men got strange around people who were missing a limb. Already, Jillian's mind was reeling, figuring out ways to get Hobbs her own free drinks. She forced herself to stop, however, and focus on the situation at hand. Hobbs didn't seem like the kind of woman to accept charity.

"I don't have money for buying drinks, mind you. So, if you prefer to buy your own drink, go for it. Mine's going to be free." She said shortly. Jillian had always been blunt. She wasn't going to lie to Hobbs about how she was going to get her drink. There was no need to. The woman already knew she had been a stripper. It was expected behavior of a stripper now, wasn't it?

[Hazel 'Hobbs' Yeung]

She hadn't heard much about Finley's to be honest, and she was a bit skeptical about bars anyway. They were nothing like the pubs back home, and the last thing Hobbs wanted to do was get her hopes up before stumbling into some New Yorker watering hole.

Hobbs put her free hand against her back pocket and felt the loose change she had there. The pocket was zipped, which was why she wasn't now trying to find her cash across the floor of the play area, but as she crunched the coins against each other she guessed she had enough coins and notes for a few rounds. American money was oddly deceiving, though. Back in England they had three denominations: fives, tens and twenties. Here you could get anything from a one to a hundred, and the notes were all practically identical. UK notes had been different colours and different sizes. Here, there wasn't so much as Braille to help the visually impaired.

Yeah, she could afford. She'd never been the drink swindling type, either. In university she'd never been bought drinks, in the military they'd been treated like guys, and now her seductive 'prowess' couldn't be improved by sliding a mechanical foot up some bloke's leg. The most she got was pity drinks, and Hobbs rejected those.
But hey, good on Moore if she got free drinks. Hobbs would if she could, but she'd never quite got the smile and wink down right. It always came off creepy when she did it.

"Yeah, let's go. You'll have to show me where it is, though."