Apparatus Interviews, am I right?

Look, minus the fangs... and Kermit.

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Despite the traffic and the lack of available parking spots, Edward quite enjoyed a trip downtown. Born just outside a major Canadian metropolis, there was a special place in Ed's heart for cities and all they had to offer, and it was clear Ridgefield was no different. The bustling town made his heart swell as he finally found a parking spot around the corner from Apparatus, where he'd be interviewing for a job that evening. He was, however, quite aware that he had crossed into someone else's territory.

Ed took a breath as he put the car in park. He felt a little nervous, and the wolf paced a little in his mind. It had been a while since he'd last interviewed for a job and while his resume spoke for itself when it came to experience with customer service, the werewolf was well aware that he was about to be interviewed by someone probably a third his age. He only hoped his age wouldn't be held against him in the interview process. If it was, he'd just have to look elsewhere.

With a small smile on his face, Ed stepped outside, locking the car behind him. It only took him a few minutes before he arrived at the door to the firehouse, his smile growing a little at the decor as he crossed the threshold. He was about fifteen minutes early for their scheduled appointment. It was enough time to pick up on an interesting scent, one that alerted the wolf within.

outfit

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Look, this really wasn't supposed to be his job. But he felt like he was still in the dog house with Alice, so this was the least he could do. What was one interview? It couldn't go worse than that wolf girl shifting in the office, right?

Speaking of wolves. He smelled one as soon as the man walked in. Asher picked his head up from where he was lounging at the front desk, sketching something idly on a pad of paper while he waited. It wasn't hard to spot the Mr. Rogers looking dude. He came dressed for an interview at a bank. But it was a bold choice, and Asher could respect that. Smirking, he hoisted himself from the studded leather stool he was slumped in, and circled around the front desk.

The gremlin in his brain chattered cautiously, but he chose not to heed the warning as he approached the other predator. Jeez, this guy was old.

"Edward?" He questioned.

The man had smelled enough raccoons in the wild in his lifetime to know that scent, but that didn't stop the mild surprise that crossed his features as the young man approached him. Ed hadn't known that wereraccoons existed until now, and he was rather intrigued, even if his wolf felt a bit... hungry. Thoughts he shook from his mind almost as instantly as they arrived. He quickly relaxed his expression and held out one hand in greeting.

"Yes. Asher?" He clarified, though he could only assume this was the man he spoke to on the phone. Sounded like him anyway. This man was clearly in a group but whether that was the group that ran Ridgefield, Edward couldn't be certain. "I hope it's alright that I'm here," He tacked on, hoping Asher would understand what he meant.

Asher's chin jutted in confirmation, only to cock to the side in confusion at the search for reassurance. Uh. That was the point?

Oh.

"Oh, yeah, it's chill." He confirmed, and moved to gesture for Edward to follow him.

"You want a tour first?" He questioned. Exclusive tour, whoopie! He didn't know if that was really needed for an interview, but it felt right. Sitting across from him in the office batting questions back and forth sounded sufferable. They could walk and talk.

It was 'chill' for him to be there. Well, good, that was good, right? Ed smiled and followed the wereraccoon further into the building, wondering how many weres worked there.

"A tour would be wonderful, thank you." It would give him time to scope out the place, get a real sense of what working there would be like before coming to a decision. While Edward couldn't afford to be picky about his job situation, this wasn't just a one-sided interview. He had to make sure the place was right for him just as much as Asher had to make sure he was right for Apparatus.

Alright.

Cool.

So, he turned and started leading the way, but paused as they neared the turnstiles beside the reception desk. "So like, most of reception is just answering calls and booking, like big parties. But you'd also be monitoring tickets." He explained, but he lead them past the turnstiles, unhooking a rope barrier and letting Edward pass through. It immediately lead into a long hallway that was painted to look tilted with abstract bands painted from floor to ceiling, the blacklight paint glowing vividly. If you looked too long or didn't look hard enough, it'd feel like you couldn't walk straight.

"You wanna see the Playrooms or the Apparatus first?" The playrooms being the various rooms that used to be office spaces in the firehouse, turned into housing for an array of different experiences. From optical illusion rooms, to large scale art installations, an infinity mirror room, and a giant ballpit. The Apparatus was, of course, where the fire trucks used to be. Big room, full of everything you can think of. The star of the show was, naturally, the firetruck.

Ed listened as they stopped at what he could only assume would be his station, should he get the job. It was all fairly straightforward so far. Answering calls, bookings, monitoring tickets... nothing he couldn't handle of course. He nodded as he followed Asher past the rope barrier and down a dizzying hallway that certainly intrigued him. He stared at the paint on the walls, his vision in and out of focus before he glanced back at Asher. He had a choice to make, and he didn't intend on idling long on the matter, lest he look indecisive.

"Let's see the Playrooms first," He replied. It didn't really matter where they started, he supposed. Either way, he'd see everything. So far so good though! Ed was enjoying the creative vibe of the place. "Are you an artist as well?" He asked as they made their way there, eyes glancing from Asher to the various decor and artwork.

Playrooms it was. He directed them to the left when the hallway split into two different directions. There were people milling in and our between rooms, so their pace slowed as he angled them toward the first. "Yeah, I do a few installments. Mostly I'm responsible for the fire truck exhibit. But I'm an art director." Big fancy title.

And since interviews were supposed to be about questions. "Are you into the art scene?"

Ed followed towards the first playroom, attention split between looking around at the scenery and Asher. Oh, Asher was the art director, how lovely! He looked forward to seeing the man's work as the evening went on.

"I suppose I am, yes! I dabble a bit too," Ed replied with a small smile. "Though nothing as wonderful as all this. Mainly landscapes, when I have the time."

That made sense. Why else would he be interested in a job like this? "That's cool. What medium? Paint or pencil, or?" He was shit at interviews, but he could talk art until his face was blue.

They made it to the first room, which a few patrons were just shuffling out of. He nodded to them, then lead Ed into the room which was entirely empty aside from a supersized marker box made of plastic, modeled to look similar to Crayola's design. Naturally, the box housed giant, three-foot-long markers. Why?

Because every wall in the room was a blank coloring book. Black lines on a dry erase white background, depicting scenes of blobby people and tubular animals. Abstract trees and bulbous buildings. A cacophony of shapes, splashed with an explosion of different colors by guests that had already visited for the night. "We erase every couple days. And change out the artwork each month." He explained as he let Ed explore the room.

---

similar to this but bigger and more psychedelic artwork

"Both, though I think I prefer painting," Ed admitted with a smile, only turning to look away from his interviewer to glance at the room they walked into.

It was quite something.

He got it immediately. Giant markers, drawings all over the walls. It was as if a child was left at home alone with a box of crayons. But grander. More artistic. He liked it.

"This is a great concept," He commented approvingly, not that they needed his approval in the slightest. He stepped towards the wall to observe the shapes in front of him. "Do you take photos of the work that's captured here or is it meant to be more ephemeral?" Edward inquired as he glanced back at Asher, hands clasped behind his back.

Painting was superior, so it was a good answer.

Asher hung back as the old man took it in, idly watching him. Looked like he was supposed to be in some kind of old timey movie, not shuffling around in a place that blared club mixes and had titty art on the walls. But hey, he'd picked this place to apply to. Kinda had to respect the guy for it.

What did ephemeral mean?

"We have a hashtag people can post pictures to on social media." Did... Ed know what a hashtag was. "We encourage people to post about the place, you know? Word of mouth and all that."

A... hash... tag. As much as Edward tried to keep up with the ever-changing internet culture, he wasn't sure what a hashtag was. Knew what social media was though, even though he wasn't on The Facebook himself. Decided he'd look it up when he got back to the inn.

He understood the concept of word of mouth, however. Noticed some of the art was a bit more... graphic. Tried not to look at it too closely. "Ah yes. I imagine that helps out a lot," Edward replied as he looked back at Asher. He was ready to move on to the next room. "Does it get quite busy?" He hoped so, for their sake.

Asher took the cue and turned to lead him out, heading for the next room. It was pretty clear what was in store, given the number of small plastic balls that had escaped from the doorway. He toed them back into the room as he answered, "Yeah, it's picked up a lot in the last year. We did a haunted house last year, and it helped with publicity." He explained as they stepped into a room that was, more or less, not a room at all.

The floor, save for a few feet at the entrance that sloped down, was a ball pit. It went as deep as four feet, filled with white balls that glowed under the blacklights. Larger balls sat on top of the sea, of various sizes and colors, inviting play. It was one of the more expensive renovations that'd been done to the various rooms that once made up the firehouse. Making it one of the ones that were a constant fixture.

"You're welcome to stop around." He offered with a smirk.

“A haunted house! Wonderful!” Edward grinned and clapped his hands together once, energized by the idea. Oh, how he loved the strange traditions humans celebrated!

Ed peered down at the sloping floor, wondered just how difficult it would be to get in and out of a ball pit. Perhaps he was a bit too old for it, as inviting as it seemed. He stared at it instead, marvelling. His wolf would probably love a ball pit. “Hah! I’m not sure how easy it would be for me to climb back out if I gave this one a shot but I think I know someone who would love a ball pit,” He teased, hoping Asher would understand who he was referring to.

Wonderful! Asher smirked.

Apparently, you could be too old for ball pits. Though, he got that knowing tone in his voice when he alluded to someone else enjoying it. That "hehe, iykyk" tone.

Asher snorted, glancing around once to be sure no one was hiding in the pit before he asked, "You been like this for long?" He felt pretty solid. Not a newbie. But he was still surprised that someone so ancient could handle a shift.

Ed smiled and also had a look around the pit before glancing back at Asher. Didn't see the point of lying about his origins so he'd tell the truth.

"All my life."

Asher laughed at the exaggeration.

"What, like, since you were my age?" That was basically all his life, given how old he was.

Ed chuckled along and shook his head. “Longer.” An amused smile formed on his face. “I was born this way.” Said simply, with a small flourish of his hand.

Asher's smile weakened, his confidence that this was a joke or exaggeration going feeble. What did... he mean? Born this way?

"You..." He shook his head, eyebrows knitted.

"Uh. Sorry. That can happen?" Like... babies can be born like that? Were's could have babies?

Alice... could get pregnant?

He felt his dick shrivel up at the thought.

Oh dear. Edward saw the smile falter on his interviewer’s lips and was suddenly wondering if it was such a great idea to confide in his potential new employer. He figured Asher would find it out eventually, so why lie about it. Hopefully, it didn’t make things awkward or uncomfortable. He kept forgetting his origin story was a bit weird to folks not accustomed to shifters who were born with their animal. Ed was an unusual man. Not a man, really. He had never been human. Always lived with his animalistic side, perhaps more connected to it than most shifters he met.

Edward nodded. “It’s not an easy thing to accomplish but it can happen, yes,” He answered more seriously.

Not easy, but possible.

He knew it was probably smart to learn more. So that they could avoid it entirely. But instead, he grunted, and nodded, "Cool. So you're in control and all that, yeah?" He felt it. Maybe even stronger than the typical Were. But who knew? Maybe people born as Weres always felt like that. Christ. How the fuck did that work. Did babies shift? What the fuck.

"We had a wolf shift here once during her interview. I don't gotta worry about that happening, right?"

“No, I don’t foresee that happening,” Edward replied with a small frown at the idea of someone shifting during their interview. Especially a wolf. Wondered if he’d meet them. “I’m usually in control.” Even as a wolf, he was generally present. In some capacity. Generally, being the key word. Couldn’t make any promises.

“Though I might ask for a day off on the full moon,” He teased a little but there was some seriousness in the request. After all, didn’t want to risk shifting in public in the middle of a city on a night where he had no choice but to let out his animalistic side.

Right. He decided he trusted him on that. Asher nodded, smirking at the half-joke as he turned to motion him back out into the hallway. There were plenty other rooms to take him through, but he was sort of eager to get to the main attraction. So he started back down that direction as he said, "Don't worry, we're closed up that night. My, uh, girlfriend Alice leads a group of us here." Saying "mate" aloud felt too weird. Some kind of possessive thing. No thanks.

"We use the space to shift sometimes. Upstairs." He gestured vaguely upwards.

Ed followed with ease, eager to see the rest of what the space had to offer. It was relieving to hear they were closed that night and he took note that the man's girlfriend, Alice, was the queen of the raccoons in Ridgefield. Good to know.

It made sense to have a space for smaller weres to shift in a city; a safe haven of sorts. Though it probably wouldn't work for Ed. Besides, wouldn't want to risk being shifted around smaller animals. That could be... very bad. The wolf perked up at the idea, which only reinforced how terrible an idea it was in Ed's mind.

"That's good that you have a safe place to shift." Ed approved and walked down the hallway, wondering what they'd see next.

"Yeah, it's a good gig." He answered with a nod.

Down the hall, and into the Apparatus proper. The open space was a blast of light and color and things to look at. Sculptures and interactive climbing structures, digital installations against walls and the floor, a corner that was a cacophony of neon lights and signs, a slide, a firepole... it was a lot to take in.

But it all was centered around the firetruck. A classic model, bedecked with all of its original equipment. It was currently painted black, except for the giant spiders intricately rendered to look as though they were climbing up along the sides of the truck from the ground. Cobweb and lights clung to almost every other surface.

Spooky!

"I change it out each month." He explained as he ventured into the room proper, gesturing toward the truck.

Ed’s eyes widened as he stepped into the room containing the main attraction. It was simply stunning, and he was suddenly overwhelmed by colours, shapes, lights and creepy decor. How festive! How marvellous! He eyed one of the digital installations as he crept further into the space before looking at the firetruck in the center. He wondered how long it took to set up and install everything. Probably a while. But at least under a month if it was changed around that time.

“Impressive.” Ed approved. The art was far more modern than what he was used to but he appreciated it all the same. “Was the fire truck here when you bought the space?”

Smirking at the compliment, Asher surveyed the space. It was pretty impressive, wasn't it? It felt good. This place was a love letter to art as a concept. It was something he'd never imagined for himself, but nonetheless something he didn't think twice about throwing himself entirely into. That Alice was with him in every stroke and drabble... it meant a lot.

But this wasn't time to get mushy.

"Yeah, it was abandoned with the rest of the place. Got lucky." He confirmed with a nod.

"We put a lot of work into making this place good. If that's something you're willing to commit to with us, I think you'd fit in." Ed was a cool dude. Way more tolerant and appreciative of things that not a lot of people his age were. And that he was a Were that knew his ass from his head. It'd be good to have more people like that around.

Lucky, indeed! What a find! Ed simply marvelled at it all, taking it in.

But yes, back to the interview at hand! Edward turned to look back at Asher, a friendly smile on his face. He was certainly interested in helping out to the best of his abilities, and it was nice to hear the younger man say he'd fit right in.

"I'm certainly willing to commit to that," He replied with a small bow of his head.

Well, Asher was satisfied. This was probably the world's most casual interview, but it felt better than sitting there in a quiet room asking the dude some predetermined questions about his customer service experience. If it turned out he was a shit judge of character, then so be it. This was why he wasn't usually the one doing the interviews.

"Cool. Then this is an official offer." He said with a shrug. Might as well put it into words. "We can get paperwork and stuff settled whenever you're ready." Giving him the option to choose if he wanted to think on it more, or do it now.

Hey, he got the job! How wonderful! Ed marvelled at the idea of starting work at Apparatus — a legitimate art institution! He grinned and nodded his head in response.

“I’m ready. Let’s get started.” With that, he would follow Asher wherever the young man would lead him, more than ready to hand over his information to get things started.