| Another Day at the Usual | ||
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| Summary: Yeah. A day. Literally a day. An entire scene that just never seemed to die as Lucas wakes up from a night of drinking and decides to just never leave the Usual. Okay, ICly it was a couple of hours. OOCly it was closer to 15... Who: Lina Inverse, Lucas, Mitch, Rayne, Silencia, Superboy When: April 18th, 2016 Where: The Usual Restaurant       |
Boredom. Sometimes it can be ignored, other times it leads to people deciding they're tired of sitting on a hospital bed deep within the TASK building with a sunlamp over their legs. And in this case it leads to using tactile telekinesis on the locks of the doors and strolling right out of the building without anyone paying any sort of attention. Security these days, right? Where to first? Nothing looks like it used to, so might as well start in the one place that does. So without much hesitation Superboy steps into the Usual Restaurant incognito, and by that we mean not at all subtly. He's just wearing his jumpsuit. The jacket was destroyed in the last scene. Somehow he still has his sunglasses at least. He approaches the bar and glances around to see what's going on. "Does this place have Soder Cola yet?"
Rayne, at what is by now often referred to as her usual table, the one with a bench against one wall and regular chairs on the other side, looks up from her laptop as the young man walks in. Then she does a double take, and sighs. "I hope you're not planning on starting a random fight today..."
Have you ever had a hangover so bad that when you wake up, it feels like the pits of hell are booming inside your forebrain? Well, that's how Lucas feels when he wakes up from the place where he fell asleep at the bar. No? Would you believe perhaps a big brass band playing freestyle on his temples? ... Perhaps moderately in pain? It doesn't matter what you believe. Lucas awakens to the sound of somebody walking into the Usual, which usually means he had entirely too much Italian soda the previous night and passed out. Can one have a hangover from over-hydration? Probably not. Feel pity for him anyway; man looks like crap. "Hmm? Dunno." Having answered Superboy's question, his head thunks back on the bar, and his eyes nearly close, but he's looking at Rayne now, or at least in her general direction, and blearily at that. "Y'seem... strangely familiar." Is that right, Mr. Blind man?
Superboy glances at Lucas as the blind man speaks and follows his gesture to Rayne before groaning softly at her being here. "I never /plan/ to start a fight, babe. It comes with the job title." He shrugs in general and leans against the bar beside Lucas. "Well you clearly know your drinks. Suggest me something non-alcoholic. If I have anything stronger the TASK-men might bring the wrath of the green birdman on me." A sly grin is flashed at Rayne, but only for a second.
Rayne glances over at the man at the bar as he comes to, and tilts her head. "I do? I'm sorry, I can't say you seem familiar to me. I don't /think/ we've met." She then looks back to Superboy and nods her head. "Yeah... I know /that/ feeling." She doesn't seem terribly concerned that Superboy has gotten out of TASK HQ. As far as she was concerned, that fight was all just a giant misunderstanding. "Oh, and please don't call me 'babe.' My name is Rayne."
It's not like Lucas is trying to be impolite; he's usually quite courteous. But waking up means that some things must be observed before responding to external stimuli. He yawns, nearly falls out of his seat, then stretches both arms above his head, once more almost falling out of his seat. Mornings are evil. When Rayne responds to him, he shrugs. "Knew a guy wore a suit lot like that. Only when he moved, it'd make a 'fweeeeeeee' sound." Okay... moving right along. Lucas looks to Superboy, his eyes still bleary, but now that they're open, one can see they're glassed over and useless, if they're paying attention. "Green... bird... oh. Right." He cricks his neck as he lowers his arms back to something that doesn't look uncomfortable, and then shrugs. "Strawberry Italian soda. Works sixty percent of the time, every time." Yes, sugar water doesn't start TOO many fights.
Superboy can't help but smile at the slightly kooky man, especially when he sees his eyes. "Works for me!" He slaps the bartop and calls out to whomever is listening, "Strawberry Italian soda, please." We'll assume someone is working today for the sake of narrative. He glances back at the lady and bows his head slightly, "Yes ma'am. Rayne it is. Forgive me for calling it as I see it." He pats Lucas on the shoulder and laughs, "You get what I'm saying, right?" That's a joke. "So tell me about this 'fweeeeee'." Seriously? "I've known a few 'fwoosh's in my time." Luckily whomever, we'll call her Barbra, brings him his drink and sets it down on the bar. "Thanks!" Snatching it up he takes a sip, frowns a second, and with another shrug resumes drinking. "Not bad, man."
Rayne recoils her head slightly. "It made a... sure, that... doesn't really make sense, but what does make sense around this place? Why would his armor make a high pitched noise like that?" She blinks, suddenly getting a possible answer to her question. "Or did he have poorly balanced and lubricated servos involved in the armor?" She glances back at Superboy again with a bit of a sigh. "Just Rayne is fine..."
While Lucas isn't particularly accustomed to being patted on the shoulder, he doesn't shy away from it or anything. He just glances towards the hand, blinking the last of the bleariness from his eyes, and then looks back towards Superboy. He seems to ignore the joke. "Well... his armor was red and gold, and he liked to leave the helmet open, too." Rayne isn't... nevermind. "And pretty much e'rything he did had some kinda glow to it. Ah dunno th'science behind it, Ah'm no engineer." Well, Rayne's armor is not red and gold; and she's not exactly glow-y, but then he doesn't look like the kinda guy who would know that, now does he?
The Kid ponders for a moment. He knows a few red and gold armored folks but they can't open their helmets. Huh. He takes another long drink from his soda, letting his eyes float over to Rayne again. This place is so familiar and yet not. But it's nice. Nothing's blown up recently - that he didn't cause. That's a nice change. Wait, red and gold? "Are you one of those psychics or somethin'? You can like, read minds and see people with astral projection or something?" Good. Let's draw attention to the blind man. "That's awesome!"
Rayne says, "So... the guy's armor was powered armor, then." Despite how archaeic she appears to be from her armor, she seems to know what he's talking about. "Sounds like a lot of built in beam weaponry to me. Not really my style, personally, but I can understand it." She takes another sip of her coffee before continuing, "Psychic?"
"Psychics?" Lucas sounds a bit surprised at the question Superboy offers him, and then shakes his head. "Naw, Ah ain't nothin fancy like that." He offers a bit of a smile, apparently not minding any weird assumptions Superboy is making. "Just a guy what saw a lot more stuff than he probably oughta." Looking back to Rayne, Lucas nods, and lifts a hand to point a finger in no particular direction. "Yeah, powered armor, right." He pauses for a moment. "Is yours not? Ah'm sorry, kinda at a disadvantage when it comes to that kinda thing." What, being able to tell the difference between powered armor and traditional armor? Or maybe he just means he's blind. That's... probably more likely.
Red and gold? Check. Archaic armor? Check. Built in beam weaponry? Check sort of? Psychic? Oh thank god, no, Lina Inverse is not psychic. She just has weird timing, such as showing up right now and pushing through the doors of the Usual like some kind of dark cloud of. "Afternoon, chumps! Careful, it looks like it's foggin up out there again." For whatever that's worth!
Superboy nods his head at Lucas's words. He can understand that statement better than most. "I gotcha." Then with a frown he sets his glass down. Drinks never last long enough, do they? Still refusing to sit down the Kid leans back against the bar, planting a foot against the side of it - and that's about where he's left as Lina announces herself. "...chumps?" Closing his eyes a second he reminds himself to relax. His gaze goes back to Rayne and jerks a thumb towards Lina, "Friend of yours?" Well someone has to be the chump in this scenario.
Rayne shakes her head, apparently not having caught on that Lucas is blind. Or maybe the last several 'blind' people she's met have been able to see though alternative means. "Nah, this stuff's just mithral. Use what I know how to use, and I've never had power armor training. My military experience is as a ship tech, not a front line powered soldier, and I've never really had any reason to use powered armor at all... until I came here, I suppose." Her attention, however, snaps to Lina as she mentions the word 'fog.' "What, what? It's fogging up again? Kyon dez vach!" She quickly scoots out of her seat to go running to the windows to see what the nature of this fog is. Her attention focussed entirely outside, she doesn't seem to notice when Superboy talks to her about possibly knowing Lina.
It's not like Lucas has any reason to mind yet another person coming into the bar. The social aspect is at least part of the fun. So when Lina walks in and addresses everyone as chumps, he takes it in stride. "Afternoon, kid, how's it goin?" Kid? "Thanks for the warnin 'bout the fog, but... don't think it's gonna be a big problem for me." He waves a hand in front of his dead eyes, giving Lina a heads up, and possibly a reason not to hit him. Possibly. He spins to look towards Barbara, the girl on staff, and tries to wave her down to get his drink order, but wouldn't you know it, she's a little busy helping other people, and Lucas doesn't exactly speak up. Ah well. You can't have everything. Rayne's talk is sort of deflected by Lucas' attempts to catch the bartender, but he does manage to listen somewhat. "I think the guy I was talkin' bout, he'd have asked 'Why WOULDN'T you want to use powered armor?', but he was kinda... I dunno. One of them... narcus... narsissanists... drat, had the word a second ago." Problem talking?
Lina Inverse already making friends, look! She's got one person already trying to deflect her frankly rude greeting and she's barely made it three steps inside. "Or kids, whatever. I don't judge!" Rayne's reaction to the fog kinda makes sense but she stops, "Actually, not sure. I wasn't in it very long but I mean, we're here. If the walls start bleeding we might have a problem but I mean, this close to everything..." Shrug, "If it lasts longer than a few minutes I'd be surprised. Wait, kid?" She turns toward Lucas, very obviously piqued and catches him doing the blind pantomime. "Rrrrg!" Just her luck. No sense taking retribution out on someone that can't see. It just... Wouldn't be right! "A-anyway, I think the only reason to bring up the fog is the spooks and things that come with it. I don't know the whole story or anything." She eventually moves further in, finds a seat and spreads out comfortably. "Powered armor? Like, something that does all the work for you and eats up loads of resources just to keep running? Just make a golem - then you don't even have to be inside it!"
Rayne says something into her comm before quickly stepping outside. The closest thing she gets to a response to Superboy is the fact that she draws her weapons as she goes outside.
"Right, Narcissists. He was one of them Narcissists. Thanks uh..." He pauses for a moment, looking to Superboy. "Didn't catch your name." Or anyone's name, actually, but why quibble over details? "Ah'm Lucas. People just call me 'Hey you' though. Or 'Git!'." He smiles like he's trying to be funny. He 'watches' Rayne leave and cricks his neck. "Don't think there's anything out there." Oh, like he'd know.
Lina Inverse oh, well, can't really stop anyone from charging off into that crap if they want to. She's usually more the wait it out type coz it's just not worth the effort, yaknow? Anyway, when the matter of the fog seems to be not entirely settled she gives a little sigh and an easy shrug, "If it's what I think there'll probably be a thing or two to hit. Just don't get any of that crap on you. And I'm Lina Inverse! Maybe you've heard of me!" She sits back, a little smug, though she doesn't -really- expect to be well known here. Especially not with all that seems to have changed since her last stop in town.
Despite his instincts screaming at him to go outside and help, Superboy decides to take Lucas's advice for now. He seems to know more than he lets on and if he says it's fine, it's fine. Until someone proves him wrong. Well since everyone's giving introductions, "The name's Kon-El, but back where I came from they call me Superboy." He puffs up his his chest a little to show off the S-shield on the jumpsuit. Not that you can miss the brightly colored thing. "So does this fog stuff happen often around here? I don't remember anything about it last time I was chillin' here."
"Kon-El, huh?" Lucas grins a bit as he says it, managing to say it the way he heard it and not butcher it. He looks vaguely in the direction of Superboy's chest when it puffs up, but that shield would have to be PRETTY raised to be noticed. "Why do they call you superboy? Are you a superhero? Ah've met a few of them before. Seemed nice when they weren't goin crazy." Going crazy? Probably nothing important. The blind man glances over towards Lina. "Lina Inverse? Think Ah've heard of you. Blows stuff up, doesn't pay her tab?" Oh shit, he HAS heard of her.
Lina Inverse headtilts. Bit of a different name on the kid... and a moniker that's almost enough to make HER feel a little embarassed. "Super... boy? That's all you're gonna shoot for? I mean... Eh?" Uhoh, looks like she was at least a little bit wrong about Lucas, "I always pay my tab! And... uh... well..." Even she has a hard time outright denying that she blows things up but she doesn't have to outright admit to it, right? Right! "So... Anyway... Superhero huh? Is that what that name's about? I know someone that would just LOVE you." Depending.
Superboy is a little used to being mocked about the name at this point. "Hey, 'Superboy' means something. It's important!" He sighs remembering that these people don't know who he is or where he comes from. "Look, Superman was the greatest hero of my world. I was cloned from him when he died saving lives. One day I'll carry the name, but not until I've earned it." He huffs a little but after a moment he relaxes again with a sigh. "Anyways your friend? They hot?" And we're back where we started again.
"Superman, huh?" Lucas tilts his head to one side, as if a different angle would make the name more sensible. "Can't say it's any less clever'n somea the names I heard growin up. Kinda generic though, innit? What's his... your... you two's power? You know, that makes you 'super'." Lucas leaves out that he used to have a super power! Well, he still has one, it just doesn't work right. He was never a superhero though. "If'n you always pay your tab, you must be a different person than Ah was hearin 'bout." Lucas takes a moment to turn and try to get the bartender's attention. He's still having a hard time, and he scratches at his beard idly while he waits. "They're always goin on 'bout how she blows up the bar anyone mentions how small she is, or how... well, it's not fit for polite company, some of the things drunk people say."
Lina Inverse oh, "Wow, and I was only joking about the name." Didn't think there'd actually be a super MAN too but hey, that's cool too! Right? Anyway, "Aha, so you're tryin to unseat the guy? Like a rival? Yeesh, at least you don't seem super obnoxious about it. Good on you! Eh? Hot? Amelia? Well... She's a justice freak with a knack for finding crazy places to perch while belting out righteous speeches in the name of all that is good, yada yada..." She glances to Lucas, someone actually saying more than she was willing to... Huh! What? "Hey! I'm who I say I am!" Even if she tends to pay bar tabs with other people's money... right? "How... small..." Twitch. "Watch it now... HEY, someone come help this blind guy over here! He's been waving like a jellyfish for a couple rounds already!"
"So you're strong, and you can fly, that makes ya super? Guess that works." Lucas observes with an amused sound to his voice, rolling with the fact that he has the bartender's attention for the wrong reasons now and waving to her, Superboy's regret can wait. "Can Ah get a Strawberry Italian Soda? Thanks." Nailed it. He looks over to Lina, who seems to be shouting something about him. "Ah'm not a jellyfish. What're you on 'bout?"
Lina Inverse rambling!? See, good thing she's not a psychic. "So you're really strong and you can fly? Mmkay I'd say that's pretty handy. Still, uh..." She eyeballs the superkid manhandling someone's seat like that, a little sweatdrop showing briefly... "Should you really just snatch people up so casually?" Wow, she's one to talk. Anyway, it would appear that the staff here are already innoculated against her indoor voice to such a degree that she doesn't cause any more distraction than a waving blind man. Grrr. Fine! "Figure of speech, alright? And so you ain't got all the fancy tricks of your... predecessor. Guess that means you'll have to put in more effort. Is it really that scary? Your actions're gonna define you more than being able to see funny with your eyes crossed." What. Was she actually being nice? Tha hell?
It seems like Silencia chose just the right moment to step into the Usual. The fae's wings are neatly folded and dragging behind her like a violet cloak, so it's a bit easier to move around for now. As soon as she walks in, she is greeted by the sight of an unfamilar person tossing around stools and holding up Lucas like he weighs nothing. She pauses and contemplates turning around and just leaving. She sighs and walks up to Superboy, intending on telling him to be careful, but he already set Lucas down, so she holds herself back. She waves friendlily to all around. "Hello, I hope you're all doing well." She peeks at the one who had almost been juggling with a blind man and offers a hand. "Don't think I've seen you around before. I'm Silencia, may I ask for your name?"
Superboy nods his head at Lina's words, "No, that about sums it up. That's what I've been doing. It's not all bad, the ladies love the uniform after all." Of course that's about the point where he gets stopped by the randomly appearing fae. "Wow, everyone's a lot friendlier this time around..." Maybe this is what he meant by ladies? He takes her hand and bows a little, resisting the urge to play Casanova just yet. "Superboy's the name. Hero from another world! Nice to meetcha!" Twisted needs more women in skimpy outfits. "I actually came in here looking for a lead. Any chance anyone's heard of a portal a crazy woman in a red and black jester outfit might have popped out from?" Couldn't hurt to ask while the place seems to be getting crowded.
Well, now that Lina's stopped calling him a jellyfish, and he's been set down, Lucas waves a bit to Silencia after she speaks. Well. He waves a bit to Silencia's left. "I'm Lucas, thanks for askin!" ...She was talking to Superboy. Close enough! And then he turns back to the bar. Mmmmmm, any moment now, he'll have his strawberry Italian soda. Yessssss. When superboy asks his question, Lucas tilts his head. "Think Ah heard 'bout that way back when. Was in a park or somesuch. Or maybe Ah was in a park when Ah heard 'bout it? Can't really remember." Well. That's just peachy keen helpful. How would the blind man know if there was red and black anyway?
Lina Inverse looks toward the entrance, "So how was the fog? Or was that really just smoke from across the street again?" What? Then when she goes after Superboy and his little balancing act she can't help but smirk, using the diversion to discreetly order one of everything from one of the claw-face bots. "Wait, a lead about someone dressed crazy? Yeah, this'd be the place I'd look too." She tips back in her chair and balances, "I've heard about clowns and things and there was a mime once... Dunno about any lady jesters, sorry. Oh, and don't you mean harlequin?" To Lucas, she's all to happy to point out, "You saw her, huh?" Her expression turns flat, maybe a little impatient.
Silencia chuckles softly as Lucas inroduces himself "I have met you before, though it was a little crowded and I didn't properly introduce myself. It's nice to meet you, Lucas!" It was obvious the man was blind now, but there still was something off about him that she couldn't exactly figure out. Ahhh! So frustrating! When Superboy introduces himself, Silencia smiles and shakes his hand. "Nice to meet you as well, Superboy. Interesting name by the way." His question makes Silencia tilt her head and she hums thoughtfully. "There have been many new arrivals lately, but I don't remember hearing anything about someone in a red and black jester outfit..." Time to cut to the chase though. Silencia's smile is friendly, but her tone suggests that it's very important to listen closely. Her tone resembles someone telling a child to behave in a friendly manner. "And Superboy, no matter how strong you are, you might want to be careful with flaunting that strength. It's not polite to randomly pick up people." Silencia then peeks at Lina and grins. "There have been no reports about the fog, so I'm guessing it went away, just like you said!"
Superboy nods his head at Lucas's words, "The park, alright." And of course Lina offers her input, "Well, actually it's Harley Quinn, but yeah. Basically the same thing. Wherever she's sneaking onto Twisted from is my ticket back home." He crosses his arms in slight annoyance, "...and it wouldn't be the first time she's pulled this stunt either." Of course Silencia has to go and tell him what to do. Which is never quite the best way to handle him. "Excuse me? I can handle myself. He asked what my powers where, and I showed him. Besides, what's your problem? Jealous?" He leans over and flicks his sunglasses down ever so slightly, "Because I can pick you up too if that's the case." The quick flash of a grin seconds later is supposed to imply he's kidding, but it's Superboy, so that's open for debate.
"Well, not saw..." Lucas chuckles. "I wasn't always blind, but this was after, little after I arrived here, I guess. Heard some lady in a clown outfit came outta nowhere and robbed someplace nearby." He shrugs a bit at that, and coincidentally leans back on the bar just as his Italian soda comes sliding by, so that it lands right in his hand. Convenient, that. For his part, he looks surprised, and turns his head to face the drink, sniffing. "...This mine, or did I get in the way?" After the bartender confirms that is, in fact his Italian soda, Lucas picks it up happily, and turns to look back towards Silencia. "Oh? Sorry, but nice to re-meetcha, then. Ah'm not very good with faces." He pauses a heartbeat. "Little joke."
Lina Inverse spreads her hands, "I haven't been here forever but it's not super tough to figure out how that kinda stuff tends to go." She wobbles a little while preserving her chair balance, taking note in particular of what Superboy is saying about this person's comings and goings. "You mean she's leaving Twisted? Well, she's either got a lot of nerve and is hitting the wastelands, she's super damn lucky or she's got a trick I dunno of yet." Yet? She backs off to let the superhero and fairy-whatsit lady have it out if they hafta, instead glancing over to Lucas' soda. Ah jeez that looks good, too. The only thing she covets almost as much as money is something that looks as good as that. "Aaaaah! Hurry up already! I'm gonna die!" The robots possibly wish she would.
Silencia raises an eyebrow at Superboy's reaction to her words. She pushes his sunglasses back up when Superboy leans forward on a whim and smiles. "No thank you, I'm good." She's momentarily distracted by Lucas and she chuckles. "You seem to see more than one would think though, Lucas!" And back to Superboy! "You don't seem like you're able to handle yourself though, boy. A responsible adult wouldn't get into a fight with the head of police on the first day he arrives..." Yep, Silencia has heard what happened from the officers at TASK. It's kind of difficult to keep something like that under wraps.
Superboy nods his head at Lucas again. "Yeah, that sounds like her." He leans back against the bar again so he can face everyone. "She has a knack for getting-" Really? She's going to just dis him to his face like that? "-in trouble." Pushing his hair out of his face he turns around and glares at Silencia, "THAT. WASN'T. MY. FAULT. When someone decides it's a smart idea to get up in my grill and start opening fire at me, even if I was kidding around at the time? How is THAT supposed to be the 'responsible' thing to do? If I had been anyone else there'd be a lot more damage than a smashed up wall and some uprooted plants." He barely lets that sink in before he starts going off again, "Honestly the big green bird-man with the Skeletor throne is lucky I didn't shove his feathery helmet straight up his ass! But if you'd like me to give you a full demonstration I'd be happy to oblige!" He isn't really INTENDING to pick a fight with her, but that is generally how he handles things. And it usually has the same effect. Property damage and a lot of yelling. Let's see how it goes down this time.
"Not sure whatcha mean there, Silencia." Lucas gives a light laugh, and then takes a sip of his soda for a moment, that first, blissful sip, which causes him to make a satisfied 'Ahh' sound, before he looks over to Superboy, then back to Silencia, and then back to Superboy again. Lucas looks down at his soda with the forlorn sigh of someone saying goodbye to a cherished lover, then pulls something that starts in 'Roh' and ends in 'ypnol' out of his hoodie pocket, and slips some into his own drink surreptitiously. All this before turning to offer it to Superboy."Here, try this one, man. Tastes twice as good as yours, guaranteed." Fun fact about sedatives and Kryptonians: their heart rate and tissue density is significantly higher than most living beings, and they metabolize drugs much faster than normal people. Fun fact about Lucas: He has the same problem, and this is his prescription. "Pretty sure she mixed yours wrong. Ah gotcha covered."
Lina Inverse eh? This really gonna boil over into a fight? And she's not the one starting it? Or at least falling victim to it somehow? Sweet! Her food starts to arrive and she almost squeals with delight, totally forcing the tense exchange out of her mind while she looks upon the frankly excessive spread with joy. "Aaaa! It's been too long!" She thumps forward in her seat, "So if you want help poking around for, uh, ways around... Well, just lemme know when you're not making friends or whatever." Heh, right. Not her concern! Somehow, she manages to catch a look at Lucas doing something but, uh... She stops, leans back from her food and starts to say something but, nope. Eating too fast. Can't talk. Trying not to choke! This is what you get for trying to be upstanding! Being for sale is way simpler than trying to do the right thing all the time! "Kah! Huh!" Ahem. Cough. She's fine, honest!
Silencia crosses her arms as she watches Superboy overreact to her again. She doesn't seem to be affected by his glare nor his threats. Unlike the boy infront of her, Silencia seems to be keeping her cool. Her tone is a bit stern now though, the girl actually scolding the boy. "Calm down. Is that how a hero is supposed to act? Threatening a girl just for saying a few things you don't like? And another thing, 'just some uprooted plants'? Do you know how badly the plantlife suffered because of your little spat? How many roots you have destroyed? Well, I do, because I spent days fixing that! Just because you cannot feel their pain doesn't mean it does not exist." Silencia huffs, gratefully accepting the glass of water Steve the Bartender offers her. She actually started to lose her cool when the topic turned to the plantlife, her wings even unfolded behind her and stood up straight. It appears that they do that once she stops focusing. She refolds her wings, they simply take too much room! "Also, the bird-man you're talking about has a name: Kotal Kahn. I'd appreciate it if you refrain from fighting with my beloved outside of the Arena. It's not exactly safe for the civillians otherwise." All the shouting coming from Superboy completely distracts Silencia from Lucas and Lina, so she has no idea what the blind man is doing.
Superboy isn't going to take this. Especially when someone gives him the 'isn't it obvious when you've screwed up speech'. "Yeah, well you need to talk to your Genghis Khan about going around breaking people's legs after trying to arrest everyone he randomly comes across." He looks at Lucas and his offered drink and shakes his head, "No thanks, pal. I'm going to go check out that park before I get blamed for yet another fight because people around here can't seem to stop pointing fingers at people they don't know." Glaring once more at Silencia, Superboy literally flies out the door not even thinking about the fact that he forgot to pay. He'll make it up to Barbra or Steve or Yoiko or whomever it was next time he's here.
As Superboy declines his drink, then flies off, Lucas huhs, shrugs, and sits back. Well, either way, no fight started. He looks sadly at his soda with a sigh, and calls a skutter over to tell them to dispose of it. It'd be dangerous if a regular person got ahold of something like that. "Th' sacrifices we make for peace." He sighs again, and then leans back against the bar. Could be worse. Coulda gotten punched.
Lina Inverse finally manages to get it together enough to rasp at the blind guy a few meters away, "The hell was that, anyway? Trying to poison or drug a brat for being a brat? Maybe's too tough to thump but that's kinda messed up." She doesn't really mind that Silencia's standing right there. Or that the proof just walked off to be poured out. "If if even worked on him you don't know that it wouldn't have set him off even worse!" She thumps her table for emphasis, "And if you mess up my food you'll have a lot more than some meathead pissed off!" Jeez, people! "It went fine as is, right? And getting involved cost you a drink anyway. Pff."
Silencia watches as Superboy leaves for the park, her expression suddenly very worried for some reason. "I hope he doesn't destroy the park while looking for that jester..." Oh, she was simply worried for the plants again. She finishes her water and peeks at Lucas, he seemed a bit sad! "Everything alright, Lucas?" Sometimes, just sometimes, Silencia is almost as dense as Kotal is. Then Lina starts up, startling Silencia with her tone. This time, it's her turn to look between Lina and Lucas, her eyes widened slightly. What the heck happened?
With nothing more than a shrug, Lucas closes his eyes. "Ah don't have poison or nothin on me. Just some anxiety meds ta help me calm down." Calm RIGHT down, like, immediately. Who has Rohypnol as an anxiety medication? Fortunately, it's pretty unlikely that anyone saw the drug name; answering questions about his night terrors is about the last thing Lucas wants to do right now. "From the way he was handlin me, Ah could tell how strong he was; was increasin my weight like crazy and he didn't even notice. Kid like that, he throws punches, the wind-shear alone is gonna be a bad day." He starts the process of waving someone down again. This might take a while.
Lina Inverse makes a bit of a shrewd face, "Not really sure, but..." Then Lucas spells it out and she leans forward, elbows on her table. "Yeah... See, if he's as strong as all that do you -really- wanna find out if your stuff is gonna work? Coz if it doesn't you're in trouble and if it does, well, maybe you're in trouble later. Hey! Ba-St- Quantum-gender-'tender! Another soda for Shades!" Huff. She waves at Silencia almost apologetically, "Eh, wouldn't worry about it, right? Nothin actually happened!" Right? See? All's fine!
Silencia smiles when she notices Lina calming down. She's still a bit confused about the poison-talk though. "Uhm... I think I missed something..." Then she realises something and smiles sheepishly. "By the way, sorry for before. I can't leave a kid like that to do what he wants. Let's just hope he'll think about what I told him when he calms down."
"Ah have some... experience... with people that strong." Lucas confesses, not 'looking' away from the bartender. "Learned my lesson." He cricks his neck as Lina gives him a new nickname, and that actually makes him look away from the bartender and towards Lina. "Shades?" Yes. Because you're blind. Try to keep up. When Silencia speaks up, Lucas waves her words away. "S'ok. Kid's got a chip on his shoulder, and it sounds like he got roughed up by your... Green bird man?" He gets the bartender's attention finally, probably because of Lina's help, and waves them over. "Ah dunno, ah try to keep out of the big scary fights, just keep my head down 'n all that."
Lina Inverse drops her head a little, "I might've jumped to a kinda cynical conclusion? Kinda used to assuming the worst. Heh, heh..." To Lucas, "So, sorry about that at least." Still, if someone with a temper like that is so strong... Yeesh. Just imagining such a rapid escalation of violence is enough to send her back to cramming her food lest she wind up deprived of it! "Yeah, shades. Yaknow...?" She tosses a hand up in a kinda gesture of surrender, "Er, yeah, it's nothing really! Just something I saw that didn't agree with me while you were handling... Eesh, I can't even say that name of his without feeling a little embarassed for him." Huff.
Silencia smiles at Lucas. "He wears a helmet with a bunch of feathers on it. I'm guessing that's why Superboy described him like that... And about the running part, I tend to do that as well. Today is an exception..." Yeah... This probably wasn't an exception. Silencia has shown glimpses of her stupid bravery a couple of times now and it usually involved not caring one bit about her own safety. She decides to not ask further, accepting Lina's vague explanation. "Oh, okay. As long as everyone's getting along..." She grins at Lina though. "I think his name fits him though. He really is a 'boy' in every sense of the word. An unusual name though..."
Lucas, as one might expect, does not react to Lina's hand gesture, but just smiles. "Eh, everyone's dark and scary these days, right? Like Foster always used t'say, 'No harm, no foul'." He shrugs, and places his order with the bartender. Maybe he'll actually get to drink more than a sip, this time! As the tender runs off, Lucas looks to Silencia with his own smile. "Forgive me for speakin mah mind, but you seem a lil... feisty... for this t'be an exception." Well isn't he straightforward? "No offense meant."
Lina Inverse gets away with vague! She'll take it! Still, she kinda passes a flat look back and forth between the two others she's sharing the place with. "So I woulda been stuck with the mess if he'd went off. Gee thanks." With bystanders, the enclosed space... Nightmare. That would have been a nightmare. "Still... I kinda get how he feels? Living in the shadow of... someone..." She tenses up and shudders, face losing a little color. "Heh. Right... no harm no foul...!" Back to her food. Though whatever she was thinking about set her on edge enough that she's actually observing some semblance of table manners. Weeeeeeeird.
Silencia grins sheepishly at Lucas as the blind man sees through her so easily. "Well... I am the priestess of a war god, a certain amount of fire is to be expected, right?" She doesn't seem to have taken any offence. "But really, I am a master at running away when I'm the one in danger. I tend to stick around and try to fight when others are in danger." She accurately described herself! At least she's self-aware or her odd habits. She winks at Lina. "So no, you wouldn't be stuck dealing with the mess on your own." Lina's sudden change in demeanor makes Silencia give her an odd look, but she doesn't comment. What she does do is cup her hands. A moment passes and she opens them to reveal a small butterfly with multi-colored wings. The tiny thing flutters over to Lina and lands on the bar, right infront of her. A little distraction from whatever is haunting Lina's mind.
There's a little laugh at Silencia's confession. "Of a war god? Am Ah still gonna get punted into orbit after havin sacrificed mah drink?" He's joking; Silencia doesn't seem like she's going to go off on him, or summon her green bird man to beat him up. Speaking of his drink, another one slides down slow enough to bump into his elbow, and he blinks and looks towards it, before picking it up. "Hello darkness, my old friend." Bottoms up! As he makes another satisfied 'Ahh', he looks at what Silencia's doing, and raises both eyebrows. "And they say matter c'n neither be created nor destroyed."
Lina Inverse remains rather lost in thought. No regret or anything, just... unease! "Hm? Oh, heh, gotta be careful messin with..." She's hesitant to call the kid a freak right off, though... "I guess if you're hardy enough to make a good meat shield, sure!" Yeah, that spells out her stance on fighting alongside others! The butterfly proves to be supremely confusing, though she does fixate on it for a few moments, "Huh. Huh?" She looks up from the butterfly, "That what you do?" She considers, then nods, "It's not really what it looks like. It's giving substance to energy, by the look of it. If this thing's really alive..." Well, that'd be profoundly impressive!
Silencia grins at Lucas's laughter. "Dunno, depends on my mood..." She chuckles, her tone enough to show that she is joking as well. Silencia really is not the type to get violent at all (exceptions are possible for protection purposes). Her grin only widens at the surprise her little butterfly creates. "I did not neccesarily create it. I merely summoned it. From where, I don't know, but it's one of the things I can do." The little butterfly flutters its wings and flies up to land on the tip of Lina's nose. The wings are very pretty, various colors adorning the delicate appendages.
"Summonin magic, huh? Sounds neat. Think Ah can understand that, kinda. Used to be able to do weird things like that with gravity myself. Before..." He gestures at his face, likely meaning his dead eyes. "Turns out messin with gravity is a good way to get in over your head real fast, though, so... Can't say Ah'd recommend it, if the opportunity ever comes up." He offers a disarming grin genuine enough to chase away any worries about the topic being particularly sensitive, especially since he just up and shared it like that. On the subject of gravity, Lucas is able to use that to 'see' shapes, density, and weight pretty decently; it's how he navigates, for the uninitiated. The downside is it's vastly inferior to sight on any number of different levels, but the upside is most visual inhibitors like darkness, fog, and invisibility don't really affect him. Now anti-gravity, that'll do the trick. He still doesn't realize that Serenity is a fishy fish, for instance.
Lina Inverse says, "Summoning, right... I'm used to referring to that specific bit of summoning as conjuring. Summoning, well... It's a little simpler, right? Like blowing a whistle to attract..." And then she gets a butterfly on her nose. She freezes, unwilling to mess with the creature on her face and not really able to do much without disturbing it. Although, the way it feels on her nose... Twitch, wrinkle... Ah! She tries to stifle the sneeze but it may be too late...! "Aaaaaa-!""
The butterfly seems to be more intelligent than one might expect from the pretty little thing, for it flutters up before it can get thrown off by Lina's sneeze. Silencia giggles lightheartedly. "Sorry for that, they're a bit mischievous sometimes..." Just as much as their master though, but that's something she does not share just yet. The little butterfly then settles on Lina's hand. It appears this creature is rather aware of its surroundings. Even if Lina were to move her hand, chances are that the butterfly would stay put if there is no immediate danger. Silencia peeks at Lucas and hums thoughtfully. "Are you no longer able to do those things, or do you choose not to, because of the potential dangers?"
That question earns Silencia a pretty big laugh from Lucas. "Ah'm pretty sure I mostly burnt that parta my brain right out. I c'n still do little things... like pick up heavy stuff, or jump kinda high." Kinda high, huh? Very exciting. "And I keep in shape so I guess..." He shrugs at that, and focuses on his drink. "I could probably beat a five year old comin at me with a knife if I hadta." ...Wow, that's... very impressive. He's probably underselling it.
Lina Inverse sneezes, though it's not the epic catastrophy one might hope for. Just a little reflex to clear irritation then she's all better. "Buh! Ah, it left. I'd summon more but who knows what you'll end up with here. Butterflies that explode or worse, maybe." Not even all that weird where she's from. Much less Twisted! Still... "So you see anything that's got mass, huh?" She picks up a roll, takes careful aim and tosses it without saying much else besides, "Heads up!" She doesn't throw it particularly hard as she's only curious, herself... and a single roll is worth sacrificing for science certainly! ... It probably looks horribly rude of her but at least she's not thinking about her devil of a sister anymore!
Silencia nods understandingly, a slight frown on her face, not because she's worried or anything, but because she's contemplating what Lucas tells her. "I understand... That must've been tough..." Her smile returns though. "And if a knife-wielding -six- year old comes at you, you can count on me!" Again with the jokes, Silencia has been joking around alot lately! Silencia peeks at Lina and grins. "I can summon more, if you'd like. I can fill up the entire restaurant with butterflies, if I chose to!" She blinks when Lina throws the roll, surprised by the action. Silencia gives the girl a curious look. Well, that was unexpected, sort of.
A bread roll! The most dangerous of attacks! Lucas turns toward Lina as she says 'Heads up', and the roll hits him in the arm before he manages to football catch it, which looks both late and awkward, but for a blind guy is pretty good. "Oh." The blind man grins. "Can see it movin if I'm lookin, but never said my reflexes were perfect either." He takes careful aim, and then tosses it back to Lina, heading only a little further away from her than he'd intended. "Also never said my throwing arm was much good." Well, as long as he's not much good at a lot of things, he's still better off than a normal blind person! He seems to be aware of this, as he's not mopey or anything. "And I appreciate the backup." He adds that in to Silencia; you never know when hangry baby apocalypses could happen!
Silencia chuckles lightly at the scene infront of her. "Anytime, Lucas. Any other member of TASK will offer you the same protection, by the way. It's our job to." Silencia grins and summons three more butterflies, each one with a different color. All of them land in Lina's hair, careful not to make themselves noticed.
With a slight chuckle, Lucas shakes his head. "Ah'm sure you're all good fellows, but I think if Ah find myself accosted by angry toddlers, I'll just run, thanks. " That... actually might be better than trying to beat up children. Just maybe. Lucas 'watches' Lina eat for a few seconds longer before turning back to his soda. Life is good, for now.
Lina Inverse pushes away from the meal after thoroughly killing it and huffs, hardly noticing anything's wrong though she's probably a perch for who knows how many butterflies at this point. "So, got a little wrapped up making sure I wasn't gonna miss out on dinner! ... What?"
Silencia laughs and shakes her head at Lucas. "Alright then... You can also call on us for dangers not relating to children though, if you ever find yourself in need of help..." Silencia breathes in deeply to calm her laughter when Lina finishes her dinner, not wanting to tip her off on anything. "Nothing, am simply in a very good mood... I hope your dinner was good." The butterflies flutter their wings, trying to keep balance.
It doesn't seem like Lucas is bothered by Lina's voracious appetite. Not being able to see it probably helps, though. "Stories Ah've heard, I'm surprised I wasn't hit by any debri-- oh wait." He WAS hit by a roll. That hardly counts though. Lucas glances sidelong at Lina and cracks a tiny little smile, but that might also be because he's drinking his soda; he's been sipping at it for quite some time.
Lina Inverse seems more or less content to remain thoroughly torpid, easing forward to rest her arms on the table, "So, dangerous stuff out here and you all respond to it like guards or cops, huh? Little different than what I'm used to seein outta you all but that's nice, I guess." She's never been terribly concerned with the things that occur here - it's always the other people that made her stress anyway! "So what! I tossed the roll and you caught it fair and square! Hmmph!" Yep, she's still not wise to the butterflies. Though there are certainly worse fates.
Silencia nods smilingly at Lina. "Yep, just like that. In a place like Twisted, these kinds of things are sadly neccesary." Silencia grins and holds back a giggle at Lina's look right now. Four colorful butterflies (the first multicolored butterfly included) are all resting in Lina's hair, adding various bright colors to the fiery locks. Silencia wont be able to see her reaction to the butterflies though. She glances at the door and then back at Lina and Lucas. "I probably should get going before it gets too late. I have some things to do before sundown." She reaches out to lightly tap Lucas on the shoulder. "I will see you around, Lucas. Watch out for flying rolls, okay?" She then turns to Lina and smiles. "And see you, sweety. Oh, by the way, you have a little something in your hair." Silencia gestures to a certain spot on her head as if there's simply a leaf or something stuck there. With that, Silencia leaves to get some training done before it gets too late.
As previously established, Lucas isn't jumpy about being touched, so he doesn't freak out or react poorly when tapped on the shoulder. He just smiles to Silencia and nods. The truth is, he wanders in and out of here for such long periods of time, he might never see her again. Twisted is ever-changing like that, or at least it has been since he got here. He doesn't think he'll find the butterflies as amusing as Silencia did, but maybe Lina's reaction will get a laugh out of him. Back to the soda~
Lina Inverse looks after the winged girl for a few beats. "Something in my hair...?" She makes a bit of a face, reaching up curiously and touching- "Eh?!" More than one butterfly! She turns to look at the mirror, eyerolls at herself for that momentary lapse... then she just kind of slumps back onto the table. "Fine. We'll just see who moves first!" Too full and lazy to fuss that much about a few butterflies especially since the only other 'witness' can't really see anyway. ... That doesn't stop her from being self conscious, though, "What!?" She's much the same way. She's never had a very good track record of coming back here reliably! This is the most in what is apparently a good long while.
When Lina seems to challenge the air, Lucas shrugs. "Ah didn't say nothin. Can't see real well, but Ah'm sure they look nice to people with... y'know. Workin eyes." He finishes off his soda, finally, after what seems like a full day, then sighs. "You want Ah should call Steve or Barbara over here, ask 'em how it looks?" He has a playful tone in his voice that says he's joking.
Lina Inverse sulks, sort of, though maybe it's more like a sudden onset of laziness? The only thing that would improve this, really, would be grass and direct sunlight. Barring that, she'll settle for the UR's Perfect Temperature. "Hmf. If you want, I guess I don't really care that much..." She's only curious but unwilling to disturb what are otherwise perfectly harmless and apparently somwhat sapient butterflies. They haven't done anything to earn her wrath either so... she rests, arms folded over one another with her chin on the back of one hand. "So... You been around here long? Or do you even know for sure? I really should try to get a better feel for this place. Makes things easier."
As Lina rests, Lucas gives a little chuckle, and calls Barb over to order another drink. Two! Will wonders never cease? When the tender actually comes, he stops her and asks her what she thinks. She laughs and whispers something in his ear, before moving off to fetch his drink. "Well." Lucas clears his throat, and looks over to Lina. "Apparently they're kinna fetchin, though I think the staff's more impressed that you seem calm than anythin else." Well, that's... nice? As for Lina's question, Lucas shrugs. "Been here for years. I think, right after I got here, some crazy stuff happened, but I was pretty out of it for that. Some doc in a leather jacket patched me up on his way out of town, never heard from him again." There's a pause, and Lucas looks up towards the rafters. "Just as I was gettin my senses somewhat back, there was some kinda propoganda campaign for somethin or another, and I just been keepin my head down ever since." Propoganda? On Twisted?
With a ding (yes there's a bell above the door) the front door of the Usual opens up and a sulking Superboy drifts in looking defeated. He's not even bothering to walk, he's literally just hovering with his feet dangling beneath him. "Well that was a bust. Two hours or searching everything I could find. Found a waiting room full of people who wouldn't talk to me, but that was about it." He crosses his arms, still not really having looked at the occupants of the room yet. "Why is there a waiting room in the park anyways? Some kind of losers convention?" Yep. Trained by a master detective he was not. Finally he looks up from the floor happy to see that Lucas and... he stares. "That." Yep. "That's a new look for you." ...are still here. Very keen observation skills on this one. He glances around the room and notices that Silencia is gone. "Is 'Poison Ivy' still lurking around?" His eyes go back to Lina's... hair? "Are they trying to eat your 'do or something?"
Lina Inverse nods once, "Yeah, feels like years. Sometimes it's hard to pin down. So much changes all at once. Real pain, yaknow?" She hunfs, "Last time I was even remotely up and up, some nut was going around offing TASK people. Now they're back and they're everywhere." Then Captain Gloom-n-Doom comes back pouting, "What? You afraid they're gonna hurt you, Buttercup?" She waves a hand, "Relax, jeez... And well, if you hadn't left in such a damn hurry earlier I've got some knowledge for ya." Pause. "If you're buyin." Wink. Oh, of course. Mercenary mode engage! "Wait, eating?" She starts feeling around again, making SURE they're not doing anything creepy. "Jeez! Don't mess with me like that!" Hurf.
"Poison Ivy?" Lucas sounds (and looks) a bit confused. "Not sure which one that's supposed to be, but everyone else left. They can't handle their drink like Lina and Ah can. I guess." He pauses. "Not really sure if Miz Inverse drank anythin, come t'think of it." A steel trap his mind is not. "Sorry I couldn't be much more help." This is to Superboy. "Brain's not what it used t'be, you know. Pretty sure it got damaged in the... fall." He chooses the last word carefully, like tip-toeing around a live warhead. Must have been pretty bad.
Superboy listens to them both and shakes his head. "The fairy girl. Seemed to care more about her plants than she did anything else. Poison Ivy was a... eh, it's not important." So with that out of the way, "And no. I'm not scared, and I don't think they're eating you. It's just... odd, I'm sorry." He actually takes a seat this time, grabbing a chair and sitting on it backwards to face the bar. "I had to get out of here earlier. I know I'm a hot head, and I didn't need to be getting into a fight with Killer Fae." He huffs and he sighs. "You mentioned knowledge? What'd you find out?"
Lina Inverse turns in her seat a little, abandoning her most lazy position so she can hook one arm over and around her chairback while sitting cross legged. "Yeah, no idea about any poison ivy! Ohhh, you meant..." Gotcha. Lucas gets a look and a raised eyebrow. Jeez, he must have some baggage about as bad as hers. Welp! Anyway, she turns her reds over to Superboy. "I've found out a little. It's not as substantive and reliable as I'd like and making use of it is beyond dangerous but if you wanna talk about it... Hmmm, I'll take some of that icecream you can drink with a straw. How 'bout it?"
This conversation isn't exactly one Lucas really needs to be in. Nonetheless, he listens while the two talk. Maybe one day his memory won't be so cloudy and... you know... on fire. Maybe. Ooh, and another strawberry soda shows up! Bonus!
With a sigh Superboy stands, patting himself down trying to remember what he did with his wallet. There's a moment's clarity where he realizes he didn't pay earlier followed by more worry and concern. Then he finds it tucked away in the pants of his suit. Luckily this wasn't his old black and blue one. "Ah-hah!" He counts the pitiful amount of money inside, sighs, and then drops the largest bill he has left on the bar. "This is for earlier, a tip, and for this fine woman a milkshake." Wow, he didn't make a single joke at her expense. That's almost a compliment given how things usually seem to go for Lina! He turns again back towards his chair, spins it around proper, and sits so he's facing them. "Alright. Spill it."
Lina Inverse well alright, "So, you kinda hafta look further than the city proper... Well. As proper as this mess is." She shifts comfortably, causing her odd arrangement of butterflies to flutter. She doesn't notice. "Beyond the limits you have the wastelands. Really dangerous place for anyone, even me but you're careful you can find portals. The problem, other than the environment, is that you may not see em at all. They're either tiny, obscured somehow or outright sealed in a few cases." She gets her milkshake, sips, then aaaah's. "Damn, that's pretty good!" So it's more like she's pitching herself as a guide than offering any real 'leads'. "Could be that your friend or whatever isn't doing what I've been experimenting with though." She looks over to suddenly-quiet Lucas to make sure he's still alive at least - ah, nah, he's just having that drink. Snrk. Nah, she won't say nothin about that.
The door opens, and... well, a man comes in, but it's obviously not of his own accord. He's got a black t-shirt and jeans on, and is being held off the ground by the scruff of the trench coat he wears over the lot, like a very large cat. He gets a none-too-gentle boot in the behind and whoever was holding him lets go. The man in the trench coat falls on his face on the floor with a muffled "Oof!", his hat landing beside him. A rough male voice says from outside, "If you want something to eat go in there!" And then walks off, grumbling about disgusting people digging through dumpsters.
Seeing another man rather unceremoniously dumped in here the same way that he was unceremoniously dumped in an alley when he first arrived brings back memories, and Lucas lifts his head from his drink to look over at the newcomer. "That sounded pretty rough." He slips off his chair, leaving his drink at the bar, and heads over to Mitch to offer the guy his hat back, and a hand up. Doesn't even trip and fall or do anything otherwise characteristic of his blind self. "How's the head?"
Superboy frowns, he remembers the wastelands. He remembers he doesn't want to go into the wastelands. "Nah, I think if Joker and Harley are coming and going like they implied the other day then they have to be getting in somewhere easier than that. I just need to work out where, and then I should be able to get home and cut it off - or at least set up a trap to keep them from coming back as they please." He doesn't get much further with his train of thought when a sudden stranger is kicked in the doorway. Once more Kon jumps to his feet, "I take back what I said about everyone seeming overly friendly." He'd jump to his aid, but it seems Lucas is already there. Looking down at his hands and debating the right course of action, Superboy decides to just remain standing. This getting up and sitting down again thing is getting old.
Lina Inverse blinks! "Wow. I've seen people kicked out of places and BEEN kicked outta places but that is impressive. Good job!" Someone with a worse rep than her!? Or... no, an -actual- vagabond maybe? She sips milkshake, fully ready to go back to talkin to Super-lite, "Oh, so there's a duo you're tryin to catch up with? Guess you know 'em better than I do but it's the first thing I've been able to reproduce, if you get me. Oh, you want 'em stuck here. That's nice of you. And siddown, jeez. Shade's got this and, well, the samaritan outside is probably long gone - even if he probably did the new guy a favor." She peers across the table. At least... he seems okay right!?
The man is definitely a hobo, Lucas and Superboy can probably tell. Lucas because he's close, Superboy because (presumably) super senses. Thankfully he doesn't smell too TERRIBLY bad. But he IS a hobo. There's only so much you can do about personal hygiene in that situation. The man starts picking himself up, when Lucas hands him his hat. "Thanks," he says, accepting the hat and putting it on his head, then standing up, dusting himself off. He looks to Lucas, then to Lina and Superboy, then to the room at large, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Eh... sorry 'bout that," he offers sheepishly.
"Mah pleasure." Lucas remains pleasant even after the odor hits him, though his nose does twitch a bit. "Woulda caught you if Ah was one of them fast people, but..." He shrugs. "Ah'm not." Once the man is up, Lucas gives a little bit of a laugh. "First time Ah ever did see someone apologize for gettin manhandled." He shrugs, doing his best to look concerned, but being blind, he can't exactly look the hobo over for injuries. "You uh...hmm." He tilts his head to Superboy. "Does he look ok? I can't exactly tell, y'know?" Yes. They know.
Taking Lina's advice, Superboy sits back down yet again. This is the last time, he swears. He makes this point by throwing his boots up on the edge of the table. "I don't know about this 'shade', but I can't just give up. That's not what heroes do." He crosses his arms on his lap and sighs, "Procrastinate, sure. Maybe. But that's if I'm being upfront about it. Robin would probably say I was 'Gathering more intel before making a rash decision.' Yeah. Sure. Whatever." His eyes never seem to be able to stray from the gentleman just inside the doorway. Everything about that wasn't right. He blinks at Lucas's words when he glances back. How does he do that? "I don't have x-ray vision but he seems to be standing okay. Order him some food or something. I'm not flat broke yet." oO(...soon though.)
Lina Inverse shifts, "Well, they'll give him a meal and a place to stay. Like I said, that ass did this guy a favor even if he wasn't very delicate about it." She rolls her shoulders, then leans, "I mean, if you wanted someone roughed up for being a jerk that's basically my job!" She laughs a little, then stops while looking on. "If you're hurt I can maybe help a little." Not a lot, but a little. She may raise a fuss about the smell but... well, she's as hard traveling as they get. It happens and she understands whether she likes it or not! "X-ray vision? What, like... seeing through..." Her eyes get wider and she points, "YOU BETTER NOT!"
"Oh I'm fine," the man in the trench coat replies. "I been hurt worse." Definitely no lie there! As for the apology? "Well, I kinna came in like a hurricane, didn't I?" Better than coming in like a wrecking ball, but that's neither here nor there. Superboy's mention of not having x-ray vision gets a raised eyebrow. But Mitch shakes his head. "Nah, I'm OK." He offers a bit of a smile. The words of being 'not flat broke' gets a bit of a wince though. "It's fine, really. You'd be surprised what people throw away." And a shake of his head when Lina says she can help if he's hurt. "Like I say, I been hurt worse." That is indeed a trace of a southern accent. It's not a very thick one, though. He suddenly looks on with concern as Lina yells. "Uh... well, he did say he didn't have it, right? So... I think you're OK."
There's a blank stare from Lucas when Superboy says he doesn't have x-ray vision, and then the blind man looks back to the new entrant with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Ah'd check to make sure you didn't have a concussion, but..." He waves a hand in front of his eyes, which are glassed over and don't make any reaction to the motion. "...You wanna come over to the bar, have a drink or somethin? Ah'm not exactly drownin in money, but if the situation was reversed, think Ah'd need a drink."
Superboy suddenly flails his arms defensively, falling back but not actually falling as his chair hits the ground and he remains in place. "I said I DON'T have X-ray vision! I DON'T have it!" Mitch confirms it and the Kid points and nods his head, "YEAH! SEE! What he said!!" Ironically it's reaching back for his chair that causes him to tumble to the ground comically. This just isn't his week. "Y'know what, I gotta find some place to crash. I don't really want to go breaking back into the Tower anytime soon." He pulls himself up off the floor. "I should probably start looking around before it gets too dark."
Lina Inverse achieves the desired effect! Vetting the eyesight of the half-hero through shock alone! "Good! Great!" She stands up and slides empty milkshake glass to the middle of the table. "So, a place? Well, this place has a few beds right? So..." She glances to the attending bartender, shrugs, then starts to check herself for belongings. "Well, think I'm gonna get out too. If I don't see anyone again before something crazy happens... it wasn't me! Later!" She stops to help Superboy up if she can, then she makes her way for the door! Ding!
Mitch notes Lucas's lack of reaction to the movement of the hand before his eyes. Blinks. "Oh. Oh! Right. Sorry." Why's he apologizing? Hard to tell. But he's obviously not Canadian. He winces a little as Superboy falls over, and makes to offer a hand up, but it looks like Superboy's already stood up. And the mention of getting a place to sleep gets a nod. "Take care," he offers. Because it sounded to him like this guy was having some issues too. He looks at Lina at the mention of there being a place to sleep here, but she's heading for the door before he can ask further. He offers her an upwards tilt of his head. "Later," he offers to her in return.
As the place sort of filters out, Lucas gives a little laugh. "Well, Ah dunno much about actual places to sleep, but they didn't throw me out when Ah fell asleep here last night, so maybe you can at least get one night's sleep here if you get somethin t'drink." One night's sleep in a nice environment is a pretty good offer, even if one's pillow is the bar. "Maybe you can steal a booth when noone's lookin. Ah won't tell nobody." Ah, the life of the ignorant.
Superboy watches Lina dart out the door abruptly and no one seems concerned by this. He shakes his head. "...it's Twisted." Yep. Lucas's comment gets a nod as well but, "Nah. I think I passed a hotel on the way here from the park. I'm gonna go check that out and see what's up. You guys, have fun. Don't give the staff too much of a headache." This time he chooses to walk out the door, giving a wave before he vanishes outside.
"I can hope," Mitch replies to Lucas's words. Superboy makes his escape then, and Mitch waves. He'll have to remember that, about the hotel. For now, though, he heads to sit near Lucas, though. "So... where is this place?" he asks. "I woke up after... a fight and was here. Though I'm not quite sure where 'here' is..."
"Oh," Lucas begans, looking a bit surprised. "You're fresh off the boat then, so t'speak." Lucas shrugs at that. "Not really sure m'self. It's not heaven or hell, but Ah ended up here after nearly dyin so Ah thought it mighta been. For a while anyway." He shrugs, and orders an additional strawberry Italian soda for the new bum. They're a pair sitting next to each other, one looking like crap, the other like worse crap. "Guess it's like... a place where lotsa people come from lotsa worlds. Like that kid just flew out, he comes from an Earth where some guy named Superman is the big man, but Ah ain't never heard o' him, and nobody's heard of my big guys either. So I guess it's like... a refugee camp." He doesn't say 'for losers', but it's implied.
Mitch blinks at the words 'fresh off the boat'. "Uh... yeah, you could say that," he confirms. He pauses when the blind man mentions having died. That makes a lot of sense, actually... given what happened to him not too long ago. But can you feel pain when you're dead? Because that boot in the ass definitely hurt! his eyes go wide and he looks to Lucas in surprise when Superman's mentioned. "Superman? I've heard of him. He's... yeah, he's a pretty well-known hero where I'm from..." He pauses, to let the thought sink in. A multiversal refugee camp? Sounds weird. But then again, so is dying and then being not-dead. Pause. "Oh right. Name's Mitch," he offers. "Sorry I can't give ya more than that, but I dunno myself."
With another laugh, Lucas nods. "Ain't no thing, Mitch. Been down the amnesia road once or twice myself. Hope you like what you find when y'meet y'rself." Er, yes. That. Quite. It takes a minute before the Italian soda shows up, but when it does it's delicious, and noticeably not alcoholic. So much for a real drink! Ah well.
"Ain't a fun road to be down," Mitch notes. "The paranoia's killer." At the mention of liking what he found? Mitch smirks a little. "If I'm lucky. Though I don't think people lose them memories because they wanted to keep 'em." Alcholic or not, Mitch seems fine with the soda! And grateful for it, too. "Thanks. I 'preciate it," he notes, taking a drink of the soda.
With a little nod, Lucas grins at that. "Can't say you're wrong; wasn't too thrilled m'self, but hey... never hurts to hope." Lucas gets a soda as well, his third today, and enjoys a long sip before sighing. "Alright, now the way I see it, we saunter over to that there booth, talk a minute, and then we're payin customers 'n' it'd be a shame t'toss us out." He pauses. "Ah won't be stayin, got places to go, graveyards t'search, n' all. Hopefully noone'll notice ya there, though." A cunning, master plan.
Mitch winces a little when Lucas mentions his own search not exactly coming up roses. "Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of," he mutters. Lucas's plan seems a good one, and he nods. Though he blinks at those words. And of course he asks, "Graveyards?" He seems like he's about to say more... but then shakes his head. Probably none of his business. He'll move over to that booth, though.
With a bit of a nod, Lucas elaborates as the two shuffle over to a booth as far out of sight as they can manage. "Yeah; lost a friend, lookin to see if I can find her final restin spot. Kinda hard without bein able t'read but... I manage." He offers a friendly grin and takes a seat across from Mitch for a minute.
Mitch frowns as Lucas explains the situation. "Oh... I'm sorry to hear that," he offers. "No hall of records around here? I mean... you'll need t'have someone help you with that whole 'reading' thing, but it might be easier to look her up." That whole 'computer age' stuff, after all.
"Yeah, you'd think that, right?" Lucas agrees with Mitch, spending time talking about how this new place is both efficient and somewhat uncaring. "Turns out, nothin doin. Ah can't find heads nor tails of her; so Ah just spend m'time searchin." That's NOT very logical, but he seems a little past the bargaining point, here. "Speakin o' which, probably about time Ah get back to that." ... Best not end up like that one, Mitch.
Mitch nods as Lucas gets ready to leave. "Good luck, man," he offers. "I hope ya find her. And thanks again. You take care now." He offers a waves as Lucas makes to leave.
"Hopin for much the same, thanks." Lucas offers Mitch a warm grin before standing up and getting ready to make his exit. Before doing so, though, he'll offer a glass-clinking toast. "To findin what we're lookin for." Brilliant. | |
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