::The gatekeeper lets Katarin into a nice apartment, that, rather bizarrely, seems an exact replica of one you would find above ground.::

"One bedroom, with an en suite bathroom; a kitchen; a sitting room... and a view."

::He gestures to the french windows on the far side of the room, which magically show a view of Golden Gate Bridge. It's just a realistic illusion, though.::

"Will this be suitable?"

::Katarin steps into the spacious apartment, looking around and smiling widely at the view.::

"Beautiful. This will be perfect. What do I owe you?"

::She moves to tuck the athame into her waistband, but waits long enough for him to reply before doing so, hoping to encourage the pricing in her favor.::

"You can settle the bill another time. I do expect monthly rent on time, however."

::The gatekeeper hands Katarin her key and orb.::

"This orb is an alarm. If you keep it on you, it will glow red to warn you of intruders to your apartment. You can operate it yourself."

::He eyes her athame with interest.::

"And some advice; you'd do well to project a less hostile air when introducing yourself to new acquaintances. Brandishing an athame will only win you favours with the nervous lower-classes of demons."

::He shimmers out.::

::Katarin puts the small key and orb in her pants pocket before the Gatekeeper exits, listening closely. However, his message isn't what she wanted to hear. Her temper rises, and as he shimmers out, Katarin tosses her athame into the side of her apartment wall, at his exiting figure.::

"UGH!"

::She runs a shaky hand through her hair and walks over to retrieve it from the wall, tugging it out gently.::

(Maybe he's right. The best approach may be to rely on my charm and not my strength. Trickery is a demon's poker game.)

::Katarin takes a seat in front of her view, relaxing back in a plush armchair.::

(It really is a nice place...)

::After taking a slight nap, Katarin wakes up and stretches out her sore muscles from sleeping in an armchair. Sure, it's comfortable, but it's not the expensive Queen sized bed on the other half of her spacious apartment.::

(I need to get out. Sitting around and waiting for nothing to happen never did anyone any good. At all.)

::She stands up, tucks her athame into her waistband, although she doesn't intend to use it, and puts on her sleek leather jacket. She grabs her keys and orb and heads for the door.::

(Seems like a nice sunny day. I should try this shimmering thing again. Doors are for stupid humans.)

::Katarin shimmers out to the park.::

::Katarin re-enters her apartment, running her hands through her hair in disbelief.::

(What kind of luck was that? I meet a girl, a nice girl, and then a bunch of scary looking people enter in. Scarier than me. Shouldn't have left, but, this whole 'trying to keep myself calm' bit isn't gonna work if I let myself get freaked.)

::She makes sure to lock her door and sits down on her bed, flopping backwards and sighing heavily.::

(Guess things weren't meant to turn out better.)