The dumpster mumbles through muffling garbage bags: :::No, Servant of Owl, save that you have summoned me.:::

Inasmuch as loquacious dumpsters are a rarity, this does seem very ordinary.

Blue is stumped for the moment. He decides to go see if he can get the materials he ordered from Mary Margaret. She does keep some odd hours. She might be up. He hails a cab to take him there. He has a sense that Karmakaze is getting a bit fed up with the chauffeur business.

::: For now, please Guard me and the vehicle in which I will travel. Do you have a name? How may I address you? :::

:::You may call me recycler of flesh. I return wholeness to the streets.:::

+++ Recycler of Flesh?? Return wholeness? What the drek is going on?+++

:::Child of Owl, are you that divorced from the habits of men that you know not what they cast away? Even the flesh that they might eat, even the flesh of their brethren they cast away.:::

:::Hah. My thoughts bled into the astral for you to hear. Thank you for reminding me of the obvious. I have been scattered these last few days by strange occurrences in the astral. Beings, ones that prey on spirits, showing up in this city; odd changes in the hearth spirit of my home.

:::Yes, my kind do cast away much that deserves honest use, or even respect. I can't do much about how the world works, but at least I can resist such disrespect in myself.:::

Blue gets a cab and heads over to Mary Margaret's shop to see if he can pick up his order. He makes sure Recycler of Flesh follows and Guards.

At Mary Margeret's shop, it appears to be open but quiet. Not too many drift in at this time, so he doesn't have to struggle past the shoulders of gawkers and posers which make so much of her revenue. There are a few browsers, but they seem more like tourists or window-shoppers than buyers.

Blue works his way back to Mary Margaret's sales counter and catches her eye. He has his credstick ready and says, """I'm ready to pick up my order. Glad to know you keep these materials in stock."""

As they negotiate the exchange, Blue adds, """This has been a strange night. I have been trying to figure out why the hearth spirit of my abode has suddenly changed character. I'm not sure what happened, but the spirit is definitely weirding me out."""

"""Pupating?""" she suggests, half-laughing. """A new life stage? Changing the look for springtime?"""

Blue tapped his credstick to Mary Margaret's and chuckled. """Larval Forms of Astral Entities. I can see the dissertation already. I don't know. Maybe I did something wrong and skewed the mana. I hope it clears up soon."

He looks around at the clientele. """Business been good for you lately?""" Not only was it good to keep business contacts on good personal terms, he honestly cared for Mary Margaret. An honest business person who went the extra mile, especially if the issue interested her. And then, there are the jokes.