13984/Thanksgiving at a Coffee Shop

Thanksgiving at a Coffee Shop
Date of Scene:	26 November 2021
Location:	The Coffee Bean - Manhattan
Synopsis:	A gathering at a coffee shop of people who all had a reason to want coffee after a long and typically stressful holiday
Cast of Characters:	Kit Killovarras, Nightingale, Phoenix, Black Widow (Romanoff), Smart Alek, Askante

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Kit Killovarras has posed:
Thanksgiving, it's a long day, full of strange happenings for some, family functions for others and somewhere in between? There are the people whose families are strange! Thanksgiving at the Mansion would certainly have been wild, but when the nights over and families have been driven home - or driven off - coffee is a must! And maybe a pastry.

This is where Kit and Shannon would come in, very specifically where they'd be coming into the coffee shop with the yeen holding the door open for his winged friend with a little grin. "After you," he says with a chuckle. He's not wearing his typical hoodie and baggy cloths, nor is he hiding what he is and because of this fact, there is a moment where the poor kid behind the counter here looks like they're about to bolt! But then they seem to recognize the yeen - or something about him rather - that makes them relax at least a little.

Nightingale has posed:
     Baby, it's cold outside--or so the old holiday tune goes! And it -is- chilly, with a crisp, frosty bite in the air that heralds the impending arrival of Old Man Winter. With both wings tucked in neatly against her back--the left one in perfect shape, the right one just slightly ragged--Shannon slips through the doorway, with a smile to Kit. She's dressed in dark blue jeans lined with flannel for warmth, caramel suede boots, and a dove-grey tunic cable knit sweater. On her head is a goofy-looking red and white 'Where's Waldo' style hat; there will certainly be no losing track of her in a snowstorm!

     "Thanks," she replies to the yeen, rubbing her hands together briskly the moment she's inside. Taking a deep breath, she smiles, relishing the sweet scent of pastries and muffins, accented by the wonderfully bitter notes of the elixir of life known as coffee. "This place has the best cranberry-orange muffins," she says. "Wish mom and dad would have let us stop here on the way to bring them home, and send them off with a treat or something!"

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey had been, curiously, absent from the festivities at Xavier's. Where she'd been is uncertain. However, the fact that she's here, in the Coffee Bean, right now, is very certain. She's sitting at a table in the corner nursing a cup of coffee, her phone atop the table beside the coffee. She's dressed in relaxed clothing. Red, festive looking knit sweater with white snowmen on it. Jeans. Snow boots on her feet. On the back of her chair, her burgandy jacket. She looks up as something familiar intrudes upon her thoughts.

"Kit. Shannon," she greets the two. But that's all there is to it. Nothing more is said. For the moment, at least. Jean turns back to her coffee. And to the phone. She touches the screen, going back, to all appearances, whatever she'd been doing. The motions are slow but fairly regular. Maybe it's a book? If it's a game, it's the same thing over and over again.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
It's only a few moments later that the door opens again. This time it allows a petite figure to enter, dressed in black boots and jeans. There is a lightweight brown leather jacket covering whatever sort of shirt she might have on. Natasha's hair is cut in a short style, falling above her shoulders. Her hands are tucked into the pockets of her jacket, likely to keep the cold at bay.

She steps into the line at the counter, noting the pair in front of her. Shannon seems familiar, but she's not sure why. The one with her? Not at all. She glances around as she is waiting, as people often do. Which is when she spies another familiar face of Jean Grey. That is someone she does know though she doesn't move out of line or call out. First coffee.

Smart Alek has posed:
Alek is just wandering the streets per his usual route through the city. Thanksgiving gives a sort of a different view then he's used to though. Many places are shutdown and others like food places are still hopping with people.

    To him however people also provide a more interesting experience, they glow from their laughter, their conversations, and their cellphones give their locations to those who listen. The coffee shop is one place where there seems to be a nice concentration of these things.
    He opens the door and heads in.. adjusting his jacket as he does so..

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Kit would keep the door held for whoever needs to get in, then walk over near Shannon and give a little chuckle, "Sounds good, I think I'll give one a try." he says with a little nod, then? Then there's a familiar voice and the Yeen whips around and notes Jean, giving a warm smile and a wave! "Hey! You missed a hell of a night." he says with a toothy grin.

When the Barista asks what they want, Kit will give his order, weird though it might be for someone at this hour, "triple-shot White mocha aaand.. Let's go for a cranberry-orange muffin." Then he gives Shannon a glance, "It's on me tonight, by the way." he says, having already taken out a rather simple wallet.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon grins at Jean, stepping over to lean in and give her a great big hug, raggedy right wing and all. "Hey there, miss Grey. Seems the students' secret hideout is out! Happy Thanksgiving, and how'd yours go?" Chortling, the younger winged woman seems in rather high spirits, pale azure eyes a-twinkle and something of a bounce in her step, as she takes her place in line once more.

     "Kit... seriously, you don't have t... aw, heck." Shaking her head, she grins, and shrugs. "Fine, but next time, my treat." When her turn to order comes, it's a rather simple one. "Venti pumpkin spice latte, triple shot of caramel, heavy on the whipped cream... and a cranberry orange muffin."

Phoenix has posed:
Coffee first. This is very important. Must get priorities straight, afterall. Caffiene before being social. Jean glances up again, this time to Natasha. She nods politely, reaches for her coffee cup, and lifts it. A sip later, and her eyes are back on the screen on the table. She lowers the cup, resting it once more atop the table. But her fingers remain around it, loosely. The warmth is kind of nice.

The entry of another person has Jean glance up once more. This one she studies for a moment. But a moment only. She shivers lightly and turns her attention firmly away from him. She taps her phone screen once more and then shuts it off. She picks up the phone and tucks it into her pocket before looking to Kit and Shannon. "And that would be why I missed it," she says, lips curling up at the corners. Afterall, nothing says she has to catch every party at the school. There are plenty of teachers to keep an eye on the students when Jean needs a night to herself.

Sudden attack of hugs! Jean looks confused for a brief moment, and then slips her arms around Shannon to hug her in return. "What did you do to your wing, Shannon?" Is it possible she doesn't actually know, or just wants to hear it out loud?

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
Listening to the exchange in front of her, seeing Shannon greet Jean, it confirmed her belief she'd likely seen Shannon at the school in the past. Never met but at least that explained it.

She did pull her phone out of her pocket, taking a moment to check something then thumbs moving rapidly as she fired a message back out into the ether. Then the phone disappeared back into her pocket. When it was her turn to order, the barista probably was a bit confused. They were used to much more complication. Instead the order was simply "Large coffee. Black."

Smart Alek has posed:
Alek stands back away from the counter for the moment, His eyes drift among those of the coffeehouse... Shannon however gets his attention a bit more then most.. he grins a bit, "Angel." he states to noone... the lights of one cellphone blinks out and another burst of energy travels over his shoulder coming from another.

    Eventually, going back to the board of coffees, he approaches the counter, "Something Red... I mean Hot... Tea?" He asks the counter barista.

Askante has posed:
Askante slips into the coffee shop as another customer slips out, its coat tight about its lean form and hands stuck deep into the pockets of the duster. It's cold outside in November. A stetson sits on its head, shading its face though none of this seems out of place at all. Most people don't even look at it, or glance past it, like it isn't there, as it shuffles into line to wait for coffee. Or tea. "Need to make shoes that will fit. Would be a good idea. Shoelessness and winter are not a happy combination..." it mutters to itself and fiddles with the small change in its pockets, eyeballing the quarters and dimes, squinting at the price lists as it does mental calculations.

Spotting some familiar faces in the coffee shop, a couple of hands do a fingerwave in their general direction, but it's otherwise minding its beeswax.

Nightingale has posed:
     Turning to Alek, she smiles, wiggling her left wing by way of a wave. "There -is- a red tea, called Rooibos. Miss Munroe introduced me to the stuff my first day there. Has kind of a nice minty taste to it, might be something you could enjoy."

     Looking back to Jean, she wrinkles her nose a bit. "Little incident on Coney Island," she murmurs. "I'll give you the full 4-1-1 back home." Uh-oh. That was never a good sign from her.

     The simplicity of Nat's order gets a raised eyebrow from her, and she just laughs a bit, shaking her head. "If I didn't know better, miss, I'd swear you were in the IT field with an order like that. Caffeine in the bloodstream, ASAP, forget the bells and whistles."

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
"They seem to frown if you try to insert an IV so one does what they must," Natasha returned to the joking comment of Shannon. She gives a little half shrug of her shoulder. "Admittedly, it's how I started drinking it. Sometimes it's good to go back to the basics. Though I do enjoy a latte as much as the next person when it's right."

Kit Killovarras has posed:
"Deal," Kit says with a little smile and a nod to his flustered friend, then turns his attention back to Jean, "Well, I mean that's a good reason I guess. Something tells me my dad would hurt your head." Then he gives a little grin and watches Shannon and her patented attack hug, which gives him time to set down $300 and eye the Barista. "I'm paying for the next.. Well, however many drinks this covers."

Then he'll finally take note of everyone else in the shop. His tail twitches ever so slightly as he realizes just how many people are here, though he offers a little wave regardless. "Happy thanksgiving, folks." he says, then grabs his order once it's ready and starts towards Jean's table.

Phoenix has posed:
Jean's coffee might be very nearly as simple as Natasha's. Except that it's not black, anymore. Jean had put creamer into it at some point, likely. Alek no longer gets any attention. Instead, that goes straight to the person wearing the stetson. "Leather, canvas, nylon, rubber, cloth.." Wait. What? "Rooibos tea is quite nice." Whatever the two topics might have in relation to each other... who knows? Jean doesn't say. Jean's green eyes fix on Shannon and her brow raises. "Incident on Coney Island? I wasn't gone /that/ long, was I?" Only a couple of weeks, really. Wasn't it?

Jean shakes her head and glances to Natasha. She waves a hand at her fellow redhead. "Welcome to join me," she says. She glances to the students, and nods, extending the offer to the two of them as well. It's large enough to seat four, so all of them will fit well enough.

Kit's generosity brings a cheer of delight from the other patrons in the coffee shop, and many get up to take advantage of that offer. "Happy Thanksgiving!" is called back from several different people. Especially those freshly in the line.

Askante has posed:
"Or vellum. Not very common, but workable. Pressed leather, could do that, but I'd have to find some..." Nylon? What's nylon? Figure that out later. The cheer for thanksgiving causes confusion though and it looks around the coffee shop in mild bemusement, shrugs and when it comes to its turn in line "...tea, with lemon and honey. What kind? Oh." Now there are choices, it looks fleetingly at Jean, as if she might produce another answer, then back to the selection. "Black? Black tea. And something cake-like and filled with sugar."

Despite the $300 laid out, it nevertheless puts all the change it had been counting in the tips jar and moves to the side as it waits to collect its order, then slides around on bare feet to lurk behind Kit.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon nods, and smiles to herself. "I hear you there. Going back to the basics can be good. I do that with my music sometimes." She's just accepting her order from the barista on duty, but sets her coffee and muffin down on the counter briefly to offer Natasha her hand. "Shannon. Pleasure to meet you, miss...?"

     The cheer throughout the coffee shop catches her attention, and she rolls her eyes, laughing. "You're going to be very popular here, Kit," she calls out, laughing. "Many a caffeine-starved soul will speak of this Thanksgiving in legend and song!"

     Grinning a little sheepishly at Jean, she shrugs and chuckles half to herself. "You know how it is. Turn your back for five seconds, miss all the fun...."

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Kit just eyes Shannon for a moment before shaking his head. "Gods, I hope not.." he says with a chuckle, sipping his drink absently. He hasn't touched his muffin yet, but he will. When Jean mentions not being gone that long, he just sort of gives her a glance and his ears sort of fold back a little, "Longer than you might realize.. Shit hit the fan about a week or so ago too for me, Jax and Shannon.. Landed me and Jax in recovery beds and Shannon followed us shortly after due to her wing.."

Askante's change gets a bit of a glance, then he looks to the creature and offers a little smile. "Speaking of which, thanks for helping us out with that.. I have a feeling getting rid of some of those items would have been a pain if you hadn't been around that night."

Phoenix has posed:
"Vellum would work. It wouldn't fall apart like paper when it's wet." Jean lifts the cup of coffee nestled within her fingers to her mouth. A slow sip goes down. The cup is returned to the table. She shakes her head at Shannon. "Pish. Turn my back for /one/ second and I could miss all the trouble you young ones get into," she comments. She's not entirely wrong, afterall.

Jean looks to Kit and lifts her head to rub her forehead with her fingertips. "Two weeks. Was two weeks too long to ask for?" She sounds exasperated, but the corners of her mouth twitches as the smile is forced down. The exchange with Stetson brings that eyebrow up once more. "Items? Or am I better off not knowing?"

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
At the greeting from Shannon, she offered her hand. "Natasha. No need for formalities." Besides the full name might get attention and if she wasn't getting noticed, she preferred that. She gave a firm handshake then went to pick up her coffee. Since it was paid for by Kit, she gave an extra tip into the jar on the counter before moving over to the table offered.

"Jean. It's good to see you. Been some time." Months to be honest. Maybe even a year? Hard to tell. Their lives crossed rarely but Nat had visited a time to two to catchup with Logan.

Askante has posed:
"You are welcome, Magi. Sometimes, things are difficult when they are extra to what is considered normal. Quick step to the underneath and they were gone. I stayed too long though and got a bit weird. Too much ghost watching, I think," Askante lifts the hat to Jean, popping it back on and jamming the spines down so that they seem more like hair. People still aren't really looking at it weirdly, though. "I got rid of an arm. And bits."

It sits then on a chair nearby, curling two hands around tea and unpeeling the muffin it was given, which is both cake like and filled with sugar, so it did fit the criteria. "People have made shoes out of so many different things. Carving them is uncomfortable at first, but works in the end, quite well. I might make moccasins." -- And then it watches. People afar and the nearby, fixing dark eyes from face to face as it tears bits off its muffin.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon just shrugged and chuckled a little bit, the apples of her cheeks tinted a delicate shade of rose at the mild rebuke from Natasha. "Sorry. Force of habit. Guess I was just raised a little old-fashioned, to try and show some respect. Nothing wrong with old-fashioned now and again."

     She follows Natasha back to Jean's table, taking a seat herself and setting down her caffeinated cup of goodness, to tear right into the muffin. Sugar? Check. Carbs? Check. A mile-long run when she got home? Also, check! Her brows flick upwards, and she dips her head by way of greeting to Askante. "Askante," she murmurs. "Good to see you. Hopefully things have been going well for you?"

Kit Killovarras has posed:
There's a little chuckle from the Aardwolf and he gives an amused, "Hey, we survived at least, true?" with one of those playful, toothy grins of his. Finally, he takes a bite of his muffin and pauses, giving a thoughtful glance to the thing he just nommed on before giving a glance to Shannon and a little nod. "Ok, glad I've tried this.. I'm going to have to start coming here more often now." he says after finishing the first bite, then proceeds to polish the thing off pretty quickly, not even bothering to remove the wrap, though he does manage to avoid eating the little disc of paper.

Askante's comment about 'ghost watching' gets a little nod, "If it's anything like people-watching, yeah.. You can lose yourself in it for a lot longer than you intend sometimes."

Phoenix has posed:
Months at the very least, yes. It's been awhile. "It has been," agrees Jean. "It's good to see you too, Nat. How've you been?" Jean lifts her coffee and drinks the last of it. She sets it on the table and gathers up her coat, slipping into it. Once it's pulled up she zips up the front.

"People watching can be amusing sometimes." Jean smiles and stretches, then rises to her feet. "It was good seeing you all. It seems I have things to take care of." Her green eyes cut straight to Kit and Shannon. "If you get into any trouble, /call/ me."

To Natasha, she gives a little wave. "Stop buy and say hi sometime. I'll make sure there are muffins." She grins. She snags the empty coffee cup and heads for the door. One stop to deposit the cup into a trash bin, and she is out the door.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
Just as Natasha is about to sit down, she feels that vibration in her pocket. She sets her cup down on the table and pulls out the phone. The message is short.

"Unfortunately, duty calls so I'll have to take a rain check on a chat," she says to the group apologetically. She picks back up her coffee and turns toward the door as well. "Happy Thanksgiving and have a good night, everyone." And with that, she's out the door as well, pulling out the phone and pushing a button as soon as she's on the sidewalk outside.

Askante has posed:
Askante spreads its tea-weilding hands out, the free one palm up in a kind of small shrug. Afterwards, it's right back to heat syphoning from the cup, brought just beneath its nose and lips to inhale warm vapours. "Been in the underneath, Shannon. It's full of ectoplasm, forgotten things and the dead. Ghosts are strange things... very engaging in all kinds of ways, mostly because there are so many of them. Many more than once there were. Sometimes it takes a long time just to make out what each one is doing, as the strings get all tangled and I was trying to study the one in my friend's head. I don't like it. But I could tear it out. I just do not know if it would be a thing that would be good for him."

It shrugs then, finishing off its sugar rush and looking down at its toes, it wiggles the bare tootsies. "I might have to curl up in my nest for a while. It is cold in the east." It waves at the departing with its free hands.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon giggles softly, shaking her head. Aside to Natasha, she murmurs, "What miss Grey means by saying that in my hearing is probably, 'Let me know when you're stopping by so Shannon can go bake some muffins'." She raises her cup in salute, taking a sip and allowing herself a small sigh of satisfaction. "I don't mind it. Just let me know what your favorite baked goodies are."

     Her eyes twinkle with amusement as she looks back up at Jean, and nods. "Believe me, I wish I could have for this incident. And it still might need the delicate touch of someone versed in magic. I'll know more once I have a chance to check in with miss Prince again."

     Natasha's abrupt departure, and that tell-tale turn to her phone, has the younger woman lofting her eyebrows. "More than meets the eye, that one," she says, half to herself. It would do to keep a weather eye open when she was about, it would seem! "Happy Thanksgiving!" Did she hear? Hopefully, but who was to say for sure?

     Looking back at Askante, she purses her lips, thinking of the talk of ghosts. "If by friend, you mean one versed in shamanic ways, but currently with unwanted company in his head right now...? We might have a mutual friend."

     But, like all gatherings, even this one must soon come to an end. She rises from her place at the table, closing the lid on her cup and taking it with her. "Told you it was good stuff here, Kit," she says, grinning. "And you meet the most interesting people here, too. What's not to love?" There's a brief glance back at the table, and she waves to Askante. "Happy Thanksgiving!" she calls out, heading to the door, only pausing to turn to Kit. "You coming along?"

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Kit gives a little nod and sighs, "Yeah.. That one is a bit problematic.." he says with a little frown, then takes a sip of his coffee before giving Askante a glance. "I've been doing some studying on the matter of possession myself, though really the most I've gotten from what books I have are the old methods of exorcism, which are all inherently dangerous.." Sounds like they all might have a friend in common.

The departing Jean gets a glance and a wave and her comment gets a little chuckle and a nod, "Will do, if I'm not panicked and putting all my attention towards not letting a cat get blown to bits.."

Then Shannon starts off and Kit sort of tilts his head for a moment before his ears splay a bit. "Umm, I'm actually going to stick around for a little bit. I'll meet you back at home?" He gives a little smile and adds, "Sorry, but I've been trying to figure out who all is involved in trying to deal with this thing with Vitali.."

Askante has posed:
Askante finally slides into its tea, downing the now mildly cooled brew in several gulps. It seems to consider keeping the cup, but paper cups aren't all that durable and therefore it stands to go drop it in the recycling, waving at Shannon as she heads for the door. "Vitali, yes. That was his name," -- it ponders its feet again one last time, then comes back to its seat to curl up on it, tail looping around the arm and wending securely through it. "Most exorcisms are difficult and dangerous and not very accurate. I have seen a thousand of them in my life. Most did not go well. Some did, but usually only with intervention." It points upward as if that means anything. "I do not think Vitali would like what I do, but I hope that he would be ok." It wrinkles its nose, frowns beneath the brim of its stetson.

"Sometimes, I wish there were better words to explain things. I do not think that I can explain well and the only one that has been Travelling with me, is the one that has a person in their head, without their permission. It is always easier to show, than to say."

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon stops dead in her tracks, catching one name uttered by both Askante and Kit. She turns about slowly, pinning them both with a 'look'. It seemed travel was now out of the question, as she rejoins them at the table. "Thought we might have a mutual friend..."

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Kit gives a little nod to Askante and muses, "It's always easier to show, rather than to say when it comes to things that most people probably couldn't fully comprehend." Then he takes another sip of his coffee before adding, "I actually sort of wish I could ask my father for help with this one, but well.. One of the spirits inside him probably wouldn't be too gentle in the process of removing it either.."

Shannon gets a glance as she rejoins the table, nodding slightly as he asks her, "How much do you know about what's been going on with him recently? If anything, I mean.." with another tilt of his head.

Then, something seems to dawn on him and he gives Askante a glance, asking, "Do you by chance know the possessing spirits name?" fairly bluntly. The yeen seems to be forming an idea.

Askante has posed:
"Yes. I know her name, where she came from and how old she is. Heng Zhihao, from perhaps the fourteenth or fifteenth century. She was perhaps twenty years old when she was killed. Also that she was never taken by the two gods of the newly dead, who are the light and the shadow," Askante replies, frowning. "I can draw her, too, if I could remember how to make things look the way I want to make them look. I haven't practiced in a long time. I see her how she is." It gestures at its head. "Daemon thing, I think. That and I can see the underneath. That which is hidden." It frowns, exhales. "She's been around for a while. Came over with one of the ships from the East India Trading company, riding a child that died of heart failure before they reached the new land. She woke up again from the black recently and found Vitali. Took him. Extremely strong willed, but most spirits that are so, do not realize that there are still beings on the other side. Just obviously not many, as she seemed very surprised by myself." It sighs. "SOmetimes, I feel very lonely."

Glancing at Shannon, it lowers its head, hunching its shoulders. "We stole you from going home to bake."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Yes," Shannon murmurs, listening to Askante. "That's exactly what she was saying the last I ran into her. There was mention of a child, and then finding Vitali. She also mentions no wish to harm him, and that he is well within his own self at the moment." Sighing deeply, she rests her head in her hand, staring down at her coffee cup. "She also offered to let me speak to him on our next meeting, but I've been putting it off. If it's my one chance to get through to Vitali, I wanted to see if there was some way I could help him. Askante... I think you were there, or we'd met shortly before or after. If I've only got one chance to talk to Vitali, with Heng's guard down, it's got to be made to count for something, to help him find some way to break free."

     Smiling a little bit at Askante, she shrugs a bit. "Nothing that can't wait," she says, simply. "I tend to do a lot of baking. Helping a friend is more important."

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Theres a moment where the Yeen may have had an idea, but he just sort of slumps and nods. "Ok, so I'm the one who was in the dark then." he murmurs with a little chuckle. "But, learning new things every day, so there's that at least." Then he takes another sip of his coffee.

Kit sits and listens to the conversation, though something gets him to pipe up again after a few moments, giving an almost sympathetic look to Askante before he gives a sigh, "It's normal to feel lonely at times, can even make it hard to remember that you're not alone." with a little smile.

Shannon is given a glance and an arch of a brow as he just strait up asks, "How did you convince her to let her guard down..?" sounding rather confused.

Askante has posed:
"That was when we had our first footing, Shannon. We did not know each other before then. I knew Kit before I knew you. He is Magi, saw me in the dark and I told him not to look." It chuckles, shaking its head a little, looking sidelong to Kit. "You have more that are like you. I am simply feeling maudlin in the fact I have felt none of my siblings since I awoke. Have seen no sign of any that still walk the earth. I may be the last and only because what I am, is hard to destroy. I persist, where my brethren did not." It muses again. "Strange meetings, strange encounters. Strange Doctor who would not listen. It has been an odd few months, for me." Strange doctor? Doctor Strange. It looks at Shannon with its head tilted a moment.

"It occurs to me, you do not know me, Daughter of Yahweh. Not the way the Son of Anubis knows me, anyway. He is magi and schooled in very old ways. I am Daemon," the way it says it is specific, not christian, a grecian twist on a word that was stolen. "Earth-bound spirit, in the simplest of terms. My purpose touches the place in your soul that craves to survive. I am the eyes in the darkness, the scratching that warns you not to go into the cave. I have been around since before the gods walked tall. But I am a shadow of them, so as you know this. I am not a god, I am the fear Primordial."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Fear primordial." Shannon came close to hissing the words, her wings flaring out and feathers ruffling, despite the partially-healed state of her right wing. "I've had a very strong taste of that. Should I be afraid of you? Probably. Am I? No." Her coffee cup crunches lightly in her hands as her grip upon it tightens, the younger woman taking a few deep breaths to cleanse and calm herself down. Her wings flick lightly, then fold themselves in upon her back. "By your own admission, your fear has a purpose, to help us survive. That is not something to be afraid of, that is a warning to be grateful for."

     Raising her eyes, she looks at Kit, and smiles a little bit. "I was very upset and worried for Vitali. You don't know how hard it is for me to make friends sometimes, and he's been a good one. My upset... made me cry, and Heng saw it. I think, too, Askante might have had a hand. It was enough." She pauses, thinking for a moment. "You think there's still some part of her that can be reached by something so simple as friendship... honor...things like that?"

     At the mention of a Strange Doctor, or 'Doctor Strange', she gets a very sour look, and growls softly. "The guy's got some serious skill," she mutters. "But he's an asshole. That's one Doctor that needs to work on his bedside manner."

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Kit looks to Shannon and nods slightly, "That's actually what I was hoping at first.. She seemed almost worried about Vitali the first time I spoke with her too.." Then there's a moment of pause and the yeen actually shudders, glancing away for a moment as he murmurs, "There could also be a way to give her what she wants and get her out of Vitali.. But that's not an option I really want to entertain unless it's an absolute must.."

Askante gets a glance and shakes his head a little. "I'm not entirely certain there are.. Others like me, I mean." He takes another sip of his coffee, killing off whats left before giving the cup a strange look of 'but why?' before he adds, "There are other mutants, yes.. And other Magi, but between both worlds I'm an anomaly that no one seems entirely capable of explaining." Then he looks to Askante and gives a little shrug as he muses, "It can suck to feel like you're the only one of your kind, though there is a bit of a blessing in my circumstance, since I've never known anyone or anything quite like me before, so it doesn't feel like I've lost anything.."

Shannon gets a glance when she asks Askante if she should fear them, but then she makes the remark she does about the nature of fear and he just smiles and nods. "Socrates actually used to talk about being guided by Daemons actually and from what I've read, it's part of their purpose.. To sort of nudge all things in their own way, be it through inspiration, fear or whatever the specifics of the spirits manifestation.."

Askante has posed:
Askante blinks a nictating membrane over its eyes, then its regular eyelids at Shannon's odd... display of rebellion against the instinct? It simply sits until she reaches her own conclusion, then nods to her. "If you are fearing me, you are doing it all wrong. Or I am. You should not fear me, you should listen to me." And that is how it has been for a millenia and more, stretching back at least ten million years. Dinosaurs didn't really need to be told that teeth and a big maw were dangerous.

But then it nods oh-so-slightly. "She should. She was alive and in ways that most of her ilk are prone, she is not. To her, she is always alive, even when she knows that she is not. Those that are dead and have felt that, know the difference. You can probably appeal to all the things that are Yang in her, just as the words I used when I encountered her with you, caused her confusion. She is yin. There is ONLY negative energy with her. But she does not know that in her core."

It looks at Kit then, tilts its head a little in consideration of what was said regarding unique status in reality and ultimately, just nods. It isn't going to argue.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon nods slowly, listening to Askante for a moment. Her lips curl upwards briefly in the faintest ghost of a smile, which only fades briefly as she glances down at her phone. "Bugger. I don't want to be on the road too late. Hopefully we'll meet once more before I try to talk to Heng?" She glances briefly at Kit, then at Askante. "Kit, you coming with me this time? And Askante... how will we find you again?"

Kit Killovarras has posed:
Kit pauses and looks to Shannon for a moment, then just chuckles and explains, "You do realize that a summoning spell is literally just calling a spirits name with purpose, right?" Then he stands up and stretches a bit, waving his cup away as it floats over to the trash can and adds, "Seriously, I have books that you and Jax may actually need to read before I take either of you out hunting, cause I'll be honest.. Humans and other mages aren't the worst things I've run into in this city."

There's a moment when he walks past where Kit crouches down and sort of nudges Askante's shoulder with his forehead before standing back up, "Until we meet again, my friend." Then he starts off towards the door, looking to Shannon again as he muses, "We should probably start you off with 'Leges secretae entium angelicarum', I think you'd get a kick out of that one honestly."