Owner	Pose
Mockingbird	A blond-haired woman, head leaning on the palm of her hand, intently reads an open computer pad. Coffee steams in a cup with curlicue script encircling it: Of course, I talk to myself. I sometimes need expert advice. Bobbi, exceptionally, has the room to herself. As she reads, she taps the badge that all the agents wear around their necks on the table, antiphony to some inner dialogue accompanying what she is reading. After a glance at the clock on the wall, she slides the coffee cup toward her to drink, eye riveted on the document she is reading. Normally, she would stay in her office but she hopes that she might get the chance to talk to an agent. An agent living through extraordinary change.
Yaozu	There is a soft but sharp click-tick of talons that might be heard on the floor of the hallway beyond the break room. Yaozu was very keen on being quite stealthy, prior to his transformation happening. He used to be able to ghost down a hallway nigh silently. He reaches out his left hand to open the door of the room, and then he pulls it open before stepping inside. Once within, he takes a moment to look across the room, his feathery ear tufts lifting and turning a bit. His wings ruffle slightly, giving forth a feathery sound, and then they settle anew at his back. His feathers are slightly fluffed up where they can be seen, though they are mostly covered by the traditional Chinese robes that he wears. Today, they happen to be a dark navey blue and the edging at the wide sleeves is black. He steps over to the counter to fill the kettle before turning it on, then reaches down a mug to put some loose leaf tea within it. Then he looks over to Bobbi. "You seem quite caught up in what you are reading. Would I be intruding if I joined you?" Yaozu asks, tilting his head slightly to one side.
Mockingbird	Bobbi had stopped reading when he entered but waited politely for him to ask to join her. With a snap, she closes the data pad and looks up with a warm smile and a nod. "Of course. How have you been, Yaozu? It was great seeing you out at the party the other night. Please." She gestures to the chair opposite her. Please."
Yaozu	The snap of the data pad might not seem too sharp of a sound, but to one with hearing such as his, it has a bit more audible oomph to it. His feathery ear tufts lay back flat. He half bows to her when she invites him to join her, his gaze lowering for a moment before lifting back to hers. "Thank you," he says. "I have been well, thank you. And how have you been?" he asks, turning his head to look over to her. "I enjoyed it, at the party. It was good... to do something that was social. The painting was not hard, either," he says, sounding a bit amused at that. He shifts the wing whose feathers had ended up dipped in the paint, extending the end of it. "I was able to get the paint out of the feathers, with Liansong's help," he says, a bit sheepishly. He doesn't know as much as he should about taking care of his feathers, yet. It doesn't take the kettle long to boil, and he pours the hot water into his mug before setting the kettle aside. Then he picks up the mug and carries it over to her table, drawing out the chair before settling.
Mockingbird	Bobbi examines his face. The polite, thoughtful man is still there. A transformation that might have deformed someone else emotionally seems to be an expression of some wild, inner beauty in him. She lays her fine-boned hands on top of the closed datapad, her large eyes fixed on him with a question that she hesitates to ask. "I can't imagine how difficult that is. I still don't manage my hair all that well, after all these years," she replies with a quick, bright smile. The smile fades into a more sober expression, "How," she sketches a circle in the air, "has this all been for you?"
Yaozu	In many ways, the man from China is still the same. He's never been one to show a lot in the way of emotions, and his transformation has likely only helped with that. Martial training goes far for teaching someone discipline on more than just the physical level. He settles the mug of tea to the table, letting it steep a bit. He glances towards her hands, resting as they are upon the datapad, and then he lifts his gaze back to her face. "I am still learning, about the feathers. How to do things properly for them. They are different than hair," he says softly. His right hand lingers at his tea mug, and he lifts his left hand to gather his hair and draw it forward over his left shoulder. It is quite long, to the small of his back. He tilts his head to one side at her question, the gesture bordering on less human and more owl in nature. "Mm... it has had challenges," he says softly, righting his head and giving a small nod to her. "The changes had been internal or small enough to be hidden before I was kidnapped and taken to Japan," he offers, his gaze turning to his tea. He doesn't seem uncomfortable with the question, with answering it.
Mockingbird	Biting her lower lip thoughtfully, Bobbi nods, eyes downcast. Then, eyes still lowered, she looks to the right, remembering something. She shakes her head slightly, and looks up at him, still caught up in memory. "It's terrible being abducted." Her voice is slow, far away. Then, finally, she comes to herself, "That's what precipitated the change, isn't it?"
Yaozu	When she lowers her gaze, Yaozu tilts his head slightly to one side, watching her for a quiet moment. His gaze is unblinking and rather owlish, but it seems natural, and touched with a bit of curiosity. "It is okay, to ask the questions that you have," he says softly, a gentle tone to his voice. He lifts his tea, taking a sip of it, and he gives a small nod. "It can be a terrible thing. It was not the first time that I had been kidnapped," he says. His left hand lifts once again to the table, joining his right hand around his mug of tea. "It is what brought it to completion. The change itself had started short after I arrived from China. I did not know why, at the time. When it started, I thought it was a rash, on my back," he says softly.
Mockingbird	Bobbi doesn't try to hide her disapproval. Her voice is sharp, eyes narrowed, "Loki! Loki can be a monster. Did he say anything to justify what he did?" Smiling ruefully, she adds more softly, "It was hard to watch Liansong while you were gone." She sighs, "But now you are here, back with us. We were all so happy to hear of your recovery."
Yaozu	Feathery ear tufts lift, and Yaozu tilts his head a touch to one side at her reaction. "Everyone has the potential to be a monster, given the correct -- or perhaps incorrect -- set of circumstances. There are those that would consider me to be a monster, now," he says softly, a thoughtful note to his voice. He shifts his mug of tea slightly, and then he gives a small nod. "He said that he was helping. And in ways, he did. Instead of the mutation, the change, taking many more weeks across which I would have much pain to tolerate, his efforts made it happen in only one week. He gave me peace of the mutation at mealtimes, and I was fed well. Was I held against my will? Yes. It was ultimately a thing which has benefited me. It was painful, but I would have suffered much more pain over a much longer period of time had he not done as he did," Yaozu explains, offering his unique and perhaps odd view on the matter. "Liansong is on the medical team, and he is my roommate. He has been helping me with the effects of the mutation since it first started. At the time that I was kidnapped, I was wearing a device to monitor my vital signs, mainly for my blood oxygen levels as they had been problematic before, and to also track my location. My vital signs reflected the pain that I went through while I was kidnapped, and Liansong was the one to monitor those results," he says softly. To the last of her words, he gives a small nod and ducks his head slightly. "I was glad to be found. To be recovered and brought back. I am, now, what I was becoming, then. The team had very good timing in their arrival," he adds.
Mockingbird	When Loki is involved a situation is multi-faceted. "Of course," Bobbi mutters, mollified somewhat by Yaozu's philosophical response. She looks mildly alarmed at him taking the name of monster to himself though, and shakes her head emphatically to deny the allegation. "Never. You are transformed but not monstrous. Loki's behavior..." She pauses, searching for her words. "Did you good. I see that. He just has no empathy, at times. I hope it doesn't hurt anymore. I was burned once and the skin regenerating was almost worse than the burn."" She tentatively reaches out her hand to touch the back of his wrist, near the tattoo. "Did he do that?"
Yaozu	"Even though there was another point at which he indicated that he sought to cause chaos, in allowing the device I wore to transmit my vitals and naught else, I do not bear him ill intent. He completed what was started months ago. It is, in some ways, easier to simply have the bandage be torn off than to pick at it in an attempt to be gentle over it," Yaozu says softly. Yaozu tilts his head a touch to one side, watching her. "No longer am I human. To those who do not know me, I could easily be perceived as a monster. To those who are of my own culture, both Chinese and Japanese, that is exactly what I am. A monster. A demon. A creature who comes to hunt for blood, for the souls of children to devour. They cried out for my blood and my life to be forfeit for it," Yaozu says softly. He can no longer go home to his native China, or so he feels. He is no longer accepted, no longer acceptable. "It does not hurt any longer. I am comfortable in the form that I have become, and more so than what I have been for months. I am uncomfortable in some ways, which is an oddity, but I am adjusting to what I am, to what I have become," he says softly. "I have heard that burns are some of the most painful things to have heal, some of the worst injuries to have," he adds. His gaze falls swiftly to the back of his left hand when she touches it, and then lifts back to her features. He shifts his hand then, to turn it so that the palm is down and she can see the tattoo on the back of it more clearly. "Yes. It was his parting gift, if you will. I suspect it may have many purposes, but I am uncertain of what those are."
Mockingbird	Not wanting to add to the burden of the changes he has lived through, Bobbi, just listens. "I think, I understand. Not many people could endure the transformation you've gone through with such grace and thoughtfulness. If I could apologize for how thoughtless and narrow minded, how superstitious people can be, I would." With a contemplative tilt to her head, she taps the top of her datapad then opens it. "I thought that owls were symbols of wisdom and good luck. They are in Japan. Or, at least I thought they were." She opens up an app that allows her to draw and she traces out the ideogram for owl. "In your language, cat-head-bird. In Japanese - no hardship, fu - no and kurou - hardship is one way to write it and the other means something like luck bringer. No monsters there. I even have an engimono of an owl at home. I love how they sound at night." She stops, "I'm so sorry. I know you know this. You're not a monster."
Yaozu	"There is no apology that you need to offer. You have been most kind to me," Yaozu says softly, inclining his head towards her. "Superstitions come about for many reasons and from many things," he adds, lifting one of his shoulders in a faint shrug. "The world will always have narrow minded and thoughtless people in it. We can only strive to have patience with them and to offer education to them. It is not always easy." There is a moment of quiet from him then, and he takes a sip of his tea. "Mm. This is part of their symbology there, yes. They are also linked to death, as is the colour black. Being both things in one is perhaps more likely to turn the view and perspective towards ill omens," he says. "There are some places that hold to the old beliefs, the old ways. Some places are more prone to it than others," he adds, giving a small nod to her. Yaozu tilts his head to one side, the expression definitely more owl than human this time as he watches her trace out the kanji on her datapad. "Yes. These things, I do know. It pleases me to hear that others know it as well. That others know the kanji," he says, a smile showing in the parting of his beak. He gives a small shake of his head. "There is no need for you to apologize, Bobbi. You have not done anything wrong," he says in a gentle tone. "In some areas, they also represent demons. I am uncertain of some of the origins behind the mythology."
Mockingbird	"Folklore sometimes isn't folk wisdom. At least not in your case." A faint ting sounds from the datapad. "Oh, excuse me." She reads a message, mouth flattened into a faint frown. "Will you excuse me, Yaozu? I need to get back to my office." She pushes back her chair to stand. Nodding, she says sincerely, "I'm so happy to have had a chance to speak to you alone. Thank you."
Yaozu	"This is a very true thing. Folklore is often distant from wisdom," Yaozu says, giving a small nod to her. His ear tufts flicker a bit at the sound from the datapad, though he makes no effort to read the message that she opens on it. He even glances away as she does read it, though with his visio, he likely could read it easily if he wanted to. His attention turns back to her when she addresses him, and he gives a nod to her. "Of course, by all means. I have enjoyed to speak with you as well, and your company is pleasing. Thank you, as well -- I am glad to have you as a friend," Yaozu says softly and sincerely, giving a small nod to her. "I will try not to be as solitary as what I have been, and perhaps at some time we can practice together." And by practice, he's likely referring to martial arts or at least with sticks.
Mockingbird	"Oh, now that would be fun. I hope we can. Goodbye for now," she says, picks up her datapad, leaving Yaozu to savor his tea.