10981/Coffee and Beignets

Coffee and Beignets
Date of Scene:	04 February 2020
Location:	Grind Stone Café, Salem Center
Synopsis:	Shannon and Alex meet for coffee, beignets, and a little bit of conversation.
Cast of Characters:	Nightingale, Zero-G

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Nightingale has posed:
     It was early afternoon, after the last classes of the day. Shannon was finally off of light duty and back to normal, after proving her recovery from the past week's injuries with a run through a flight obstacle course back home. So she takes advantage of the freedom, leaving a note to let others know where she'd gone, and makes the flight out herself. Have wings, will travel!

     Salem Center was usually mutant-friendly, and she knew even if she got jumped, chances were pretty good that, short of it being catastrophically bad, she could come out of it alright. Thankfully, the flight was uneventful, and she's found a spot near the front windows to sit down in the rather rustic café, with the reclaimed wood tables, wicker basket shades over the lamps, and bare brick walls. She's wearing jeans, knee-length caramel suede boots, and a cream colored poet's blouse. Her caramel velveteen parka is on the back of her chair, and she's just relaxing with a tall caramel mocha, sipping the sweet, restorative brew. She had her doubts about anybody showing up but hey, one could hope, right?

Zero-G has posed:
That's the thing with not having expectations, one's always surprised when they show up. While Alex could fly, he is being far more low-key, having used an Uber to arrive at the cafe. Dressed in a warm sweater and blue jeans with tennis shoes, he makes his way into the coffee joint and goes to order a triple chocolate hot chocolate. You know the one with white, milk, and belgian chcoolate all in the same cup.

But he's looking for someone and when he spots the blonde girl, he makes his way over and offers a smile. "Hey Shannon." he greets as he glances at the chair. "Mind company?" As if this was not planned over several texts, right?

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon smiles a little bit at Alex, her eyebrows quirking as if in surprise. Planned or not, she hadn't expected anything to come of it. "Hey! Yeah, could do with some company." She motions to one of the empty chairs at her table with a subtle flick of her fingers. "I wasn't sure if you were going to be able to make it, but I held off on ordering the beignets so you could try them piping hot, as they're meant to be." Indeed, somewhere amidst the bittersweet notes of coffee, chocolate, caramel, and various other accoutrements of the café, there is the aroma of something sweet, hot, and definitely anything but oven-fried. "So how's it going?"

Zero-G has posed:
"Why wouldn't I have? I mean, that's the whole point in making plans, right?" Alex asks in some confusion as he takes a seat across from her. "You look really nice." With a smile, he folds his hands over each other. "I'm excited to try these things. I saw them on a food program once, but Julie was all like 'They're just donuts without frosting' and then Jack and Katie get into why would you want to eat anything without frosting and..." he sighs. "Siblings."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon chuckles a little, ruffling her wings by way of a shrug, before tucking them in neatly behind her. "Plans get made and broken all the time. Folks move on, disappear, or just wind up doing their own thing." Ducking her head, she glances down at the old favorite poet's blouse, her cheeks going just a tiny bit rosy. "Thanks. I sewed this thing like oh, forever ago. It's held up well." Embarrassingly enough, though, there is a light growling from her general vicinity and she chuckles, taking the hint from her stomach to go order the beignets at the front counter. "Be right back!"

Zero-G has posed:
"Oh wow, you made it yourself? That's neat! Though I guess you would have to with the wings..." Alex muses, glancing at the appendages. "They look really comfortable." he finally decides on, before Shannon's tummy growl causes him to blush in turn and he glances down into his hot chooclate. "Sure, sure! I didn't mean to make you wait!" he offers apologetically, folding his hands around his own cup.

Nightingale has posed:
     It didn't take long for the beignets to be made, and graced with a dusting of powdered sugar. Shannon comes back to the table with a small basket full of the little puffy pillows of fried, sugary goodness, setting it down on the table. "Yeah, it helps to either be able to make my own clothes, or alter ones that I find to work with my wings. Hey, if I fail as a doctor or musician, I could always go into fashion design for the mutant community!" The beignets smell absolutely heavenly, evoking images of coffee in New Orleans on a sultry afternoon. "Try not to breathe in the powdered sugar," she cautions, smiling as she remembers an incident where someone had done just that, to hilarious effect.

Zero-G has posed:
"Is that what you want to be, is a doctor?" Alex asks curiously as he glances at the basket of fried dough, letting her pick the one she wants first before he picks his own. "My dad's a doctor. Not a medical doctor. He's a scientist. Has some really neat ideas and inventions." he explains as he listens to the instructions. "Don't snort the beignets, got it"

Nightingale has posed:
     "Once upon a time I wanted to be a musician. But dreams change." The winged teen purses her lips slightly, thinking a bit. Sometimes, wisdom came from the most unlikely of sources. Shaking her head slightly, she lets out a short laugh, rolling her eyes slightly as she reaches for a beignet. "Maybe it doesn't have to, though. I mean, it seemed like it did when my mutations manifested a couple years ago. But nobody says I can't do both. What about you, though? What do you want to be?"

Zero-G has posed:
"A musical doctor. That could be pretty neat." Alex responds as he reaches for one as well and their hands touch for a moment. He pulls back with a blushing laugh. "Sorry, thought you'd already grabbed one!" His cheeks are warm before the blonde reaches up with his other hand, showing a couple of scars on his cheek, before his attention returns to the pastries. "I sort of what to follow in my dad's footsteps, but my world's been opened up with ineterstellar travel and all, and I want to explore that more."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon lets out a soft sigh, her brows furrowing as she reaches out to touch those scars, tracing one of them briefly with one fingertip before pulling her hand away. "Those look like they've been there a while," she murmurs. "I wouldn't be able to heal those." To distract herself from such sombre musings, she bites into her beignet, letting the warmth and sweetness of the little pillow of deep-fried dough work its magic as she listens to him. "Well, if I can do music and medicine at the same time, why couldn't you follow both your dreams, too?"

Zero-G has posed:
Alex closes his eyes against the touch of his scars and shakes his head. "They seem like a lifetime ago. But I was only twelve." he gets a little bit of a smile, a ghost of one. "And now I'm so mature at sixteen." His chuckle is dry, the humor lost before he decides to turn his attention to the beignet and tries a bite. After some gnoshing and a swallow, he grins. "This is really good." he decides.

Nightingale has posed:
     Nodding with understanding, Shannon nibbles her beignet, listening to Alex speak. "A lot can change in just a short time," she agrees. "Sometimes it's a few years, sometimes even just a few months." She falls silent, letting him continue his tale if he so chooses, or otherwise, simply sharing a companionable silence for a few minutes.

Zero-G has posed:
Avoiding the story seems to be the play of the day as he glances at her wings. "Do you bump into doorways with those?" he asks in genuine curiosity. "How fast can you fly?" Ah, the old 'let's talk about you instead' avoidance technique is in play as he takes a bite from another beignet.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon laughs softly, ruffling her wings in a semi-dismissive gesture. She has a bit of a powdered sugar moustache from her beignet, which she flicks away with a napkin before replying. "Sometimes, if it's crowded, but most often I'm okay. Last time anyone clocked me, my top sustained speed was around sixty-five, maybe seventy. I've never tried to see how long I can maintain that before getting tired, though." Retrieving another napkin, she chuckles, passing it over to him and making a subtle gesture towards her upper lip, and coughing.

Zero-G has posed:
"We should go flying together sometime!" Alex declares, making the decision for a second date, even if the first one isn't done yet. Then she's pointing out his moustache and he lifts his head and muhahaha. "I'm here to steal your powdered sugar goodness, Winged Wonder!" he declares as he takes one of the pastries. "The crispy outside, the airy inside. That sweetness in every bite! I cannot resist your whims, Winged Wonder, I give myself to your tender mercies!" He exclaims and lowers his head, utterly theatric and defeated. And then he lifts his gaze just a bit, to see her expression.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon lofts her eyebrows, not quite sure what to make of the humorously bombastic display. It's all she can do not to burst into gales of laughter, instead hiding her smile behind her hand and chuckling softly. "I'm pretty sure you mean the beignets, good sir, for I am not sweet at all." Her cheeks are colored lightly rose, and she ducks her head--ignoring her own advice at just that moment, accidentally inhaling some of the sugar off of her beignet! It sends her into a bit of a coughing fit, her wings half-spread as she tries to catch her breath.

Zero-G has posed:
Wincing, Alex did not expect that response. "Ha!" he decides, "You have fallen for your own sweet pollen!" Then he had a peal of laughter, offering her the napkin he hadn't used yet so she can compose herself before he moves to take another napkin. Though there is some concern there. Hopefully he didn't just blow it.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon manages to compose herself, catching her breath and cleaning her face. She takes a quick sip of her coffee to get rid of the last of the sugar, grinning a little sheepishly. "Well, at least I'm okay." It was nice to smile for once, and a few of the shadows that often lingered in her eyes fade away, if only for the moment. "So... you were talking about your family a little the other day. Are there a lot of you?"

Zero-G has posed:
It's nice to see her smile. Alex doesn't feel like he's blowing it all as he uses his napking to wipe and takes a sip from his hot chocolate. "So I'm the oldest of four." he explains. "I'm sixteen, Julie's fifteen, Jack is thirteen, and Katie's ten." he explains as he sets down his cup to take another beignet and looks thoughtful. "We all got our powers at the same time."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods, looking a bit thoughtful as she listens. She recalled a few nights ago at the burger joint, when he'd hinted at a rather dramatic event centered around the emergence of his family's powers. However, just as then, she was not about to pry, instead letting him come out with it in his own time. "I was almost one of six," she says, decidedly more quiet and somber. "Mom miscarried a couple times, and lost one to crib death. Lost two sets of twins, and one singleton. There was Heather and Chad... Bree and Kelly... and Jacob. Jacob's the one she lost to crib death. I'm the only one who survived."

Zero-G has posed:
"Then you are your own blessing and miracle." Alex decides, smiling to her. "And I feel even more the special for having met you." he shrugs his shoulders, though his hand reaches to cover hers and gives it a light squeeze. "Are you still in contact with your parents?" he asks her finally. He knows that the mutant thing can be traumatic.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods, and smiles more brightly, returning the squeeze of her hand briefly. "Oh, very much so. I've been incredibly lucky. Sure, it was kind of a shock for everyone when the healing touch came in, even more with the wings, but they never gave up on me. We're in pretty regular contact. Mom's an artist and dad...." Here, she laughs a bit, and grins. "...would you believe he's a mortician? And no, we didn't live above the funeral home like in 'My Girl'."

Zero-G has posed:
Alex laughs at that, "I don't think I've ever seen My Girl?" he admits. It's an old movie, and well, it's mushy romance stuff. "My mom stays at home, my dad does all the work as a scientist. He works on a project for making cleaner energy." It's the easiest way for him to really describe what it his father does. Though he did notice the squeeze of his hand and he offers her a smile. "I live in New York. My parent's place still."

Nightingale has posed:
     Oooo, boy. There's that tricky matter of living arrangements and school again. Shannon simply glosses right over the matter, avoiding it entirely, smiling lightly. "And you're still getting along with your family?" she asks, taking a sip of her coffee. "Wow. Alternative energy research. That's pretty neat, actually."

Zero-G has posed:
Alex considers for a moment. "That's complicated." he explains. It's an easy way to gloss over 'Aliens reporgrammed my parents' memories so that they don't know we have powers and they're really susceptible to the power of suggestion and the Powers' kids need to take lots of 'Bathroom Breaks'.'. "They don't exactly know we have powers. I'm the only one that still actively uses them." he finally allows. "But yeah. He's doing some work on power by combining matter and anti-matter. All theoretical." Except it was created by him - and it got the kids involved in an interstellar war.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon raises her eyebrows, peering at Alex over the rim of her cup. "Think you'll ever tell them? It'd be pretty hard to hide it forever." Whoah, wait. Wha...? Her jaw drops, pale azure eyes going wide. "Did I hear you right? Matter and /anti-matter/? I thought that stuff was just science fiction!" But then again, many science fictions were based somewhere in fact, as were myths and tales of old.

Zero-G has posed:
"They'll probably find out someday. But we kind of all keep it quiet. Julie and I want to let Jack and Katie get a chance to you know... grow up." Alex shrugs his shoulders. "Though Katie really wants to tell them. But she was only five when she got her powers." Let that one sink in for a moment. "But yeah. He actually made a device that does it, but he's not given it a try out yet."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Ooof. Wow. That sounds like pretty intense stuff. Fingers crossed, let's hope it works!" Messing around with one of the more dangerous theoretical substances conceived of by the mind of mankind? Yeah, that was the kind of thing you heard every day, right?

     Sadly, though, it seems like they're down to just one beignet in the basket, and Shannon smiles, nudging it towards him. "All yours. Told you these were pretty good!"

Zero-G has posed:
Alex shakes his head. "Yours was the stomach that was growling, I insist!" he says with a laugh, before glancing up. "But only if you agree that we can go out again?" he asks, a hopeful look in his smile for the question.

Nightingale has posed:
     "How about we split it, and consider the matter in question?" As if to seal the deal, Shannon breaks the beignet in half, offering one to Alex and smiling. "You mentioned going flying. Anybody ever clock you?"

Zero-G has posed:
"Nope. But I did offer to go flying with you!" Alex points out as he accepts the other half of the beignet and gives her a smile. Though he's not going to push her. He doesn't know what's happened, but he's just gonna be quiet on it.