Hot N Steamy

Participants:

deckard_icon.gif cally_icon.gif kameron_icon.gif joe_icon.gif brian_icon.gif ygraine_icon.gif

Scene Title Hot N' Steamy
Synopsis Literal definition. Also, Professor Deckard assesses asses of the girls. Beverages are sacrified.
Date February 13, 2009
Alt. Log Titles Asstacular and Turning up the Heat ft. Deckard

Central Park

Weather:
Currently in New York, it is clear outside. The temperature is 38 degrees Farenheit (3 degrees Celsius). The wind is currently coming in from the west at 8 mph, with gusts up to 21 mph. The wind chill index puts the temperature to 32 degrees Farenheit (0 degrees Celsius.) The barometric pressure reading is 29.98 and rising, and the relative humidity is 26 percent. The dewpoint is 6 degrees Farenheit (-14 degrees Celsius.)


It's a cold, clear day of frigid gusts and high, fast-moving clouds. Given the lack of snow and rain, Central Park is rather busier than it has been for some time, though many of those moving along its twisting paths are hurrying with hunched shoulders and hats or hoods pulled low to try to save them from the intermittent surges of stronger wind.

Lacking a hat, but with her hands thrust into the pockets of her heavily reinforced biker's jacket, Ygraine approaches one of the hot food vendors determined enough to remain in operation during Winter. A few moments of haggling occur, as she responds to his first quote for the cost of a coffee and hot dog with incredulity, before her voice rises a touch. "I first came here in '06. I'm not a sodding tourist, pal. Just give me the food and don't try any more BS", she informs him, voice clearly both educated and British.

"Yeah. Give me a half hour."
The words said into the cell phone was almost an hour ago. After hanging up on the man, Brian suggested that they all go as a big happy family out to the park. He failed to mention clandestine meetings of armsdealers and whatnot. But no problem! Brian's gloved hand is linked into Joe's who's other hand is linked onto by Kameron, and of course the trio is completed by Prince.
Gray eyes search the park quietly as the three walk through the park, his other hand tucked into his coat pocket Brian casts a glance down at the little boy holding his hand. A little smirk pulls up his lips. "Joejoe. You want a hotdog buddy?" His vision swings up again, looking for a certain angry old man.

Despite the cold temperature, there's one girl who either doesn't realize it, or simply doesn't own anything warmer. Judging by the worn appearance she wears, and the relative cleanliness (or lack-there-of) of her features, it is quite likely the latter. The girl, Cally, is laying atop a large rock that borders on one of the paths in the park, her head poking out just enough to allow her to view the path. Beside her, there is a collection of large sticks, and a rather full denim satchel.
Below her, on the path, pedestrians, joggers, and the like travel down the path, though they at least are a little better dressed for the weather. Cally has a bored expression on her face… until she hears a noise. It's the sound of tiny wheels moving down the path, the sound of a skateboarder. Quickly, she grabs a large stick, and let's it drop onto the middle of the path below.

CRASH! "OW GODAMNIT!" The sound of the skateboarder hitting the stick and crashing into the bushes that border the curve of the path can be stiffles the sound of Cally's quick laughter as she ducks her head, though not quick enough for her not to be spotted by the pudgy hotdog vendor, who shakes his head and turns back to Ygraine, serving up the food with a comment of, "She's been at that for the last three hours, if you can believe it. That's four skateboarders, and a rollerblader on her list. You'd think she'd get bored. At least she does it near the bushes and grass where they won't get hurt." He shakes his head again, turning to Brian. "Want something, pal?"

It's chiiiiilly. Quite chilly. Enough that Kameron is bundled up with one of her heavier coats. Grasping the dog leash, Kameron's amusement is endless, both in Joe grasping her hand, and Prince, taking point with a bit of a prance to his steps. She didn't know what had him in such a good mood, but it was terribly funny.
"Is that what that smell is?" Kameron asks Brian curiously, hearing him direct the question to his charge. But then a familiar voice! Prince comes to a stop at the sight of the other girl, and barks twice, "Ygraine? Is that you?" The brown haired girl is about to say something further, only to jump at the sudden -CRASH- and swear. The heck!?

Angry and old. That's Deckard. Buffered against the wind by the grey of his overcoat, he's foregone hat and scarf, which might explain why his collar is flipped up against the back of his neck. He's wearing a suit under that, lighter grey over slate blue. If it wasn't for the bruising purpled down the side of his cheekbone from beneath the black screen of his glasses, he'd fade into the landscape as easily as any other scruffy middle-aged businessman passing through the park.
He's not far from the hot dog stand, head turned to better eavesdrop while the guy fills Ygraine in on Cally's record so far. Uncharacteristically oblivious to Brian's approach while he watches her latest victim pick himself painfully up out of the brush.

Seemingly-random petty violence against those on two wheels does serve to distract Ygraine, turning her ire from the vendor to the rock-top blonde - albeit merely in the form of a momentary glower. Accepting her food and drink from the man, she glances around in repsonse to the bark and Kameron's query, performing a minor double-take. "Hello there", she says, clearly surprised, taking a couple of steps away from the stall to leave more room. "I didn't realise that you pair knew each other." Joe receives a rather formal nod of acknowledgement.

Sending a glance at the serial stick bomber, Brian gives a little chuckle despite himself. It was pretty funny. But when Joe starts to laugh a firm glare is directed at the boy. "Laughing at people getting hurt is bad." Haha. But then Ygraine is suddenly there and talking at them! Brian's eyes go wide as well, he shoots a glance at Kameron. "You know Yggles?" He asks, a little shocked. Looking to Ygraine, he gives a weak smile. "Hey. This is JoeJoe. Part of that thing I was talking about the other day." He says softly to the brit, indicating Joe. Who in turn gives a patented.
"Hi."
"One minute." Brian answers the vendor, going to dig into his pockets for his wallet. That's when he just happens to catch the old angry man. Middle aged-businessman hah! He pulls out his wallet, Deckard will have to wait a minute.

A pair of wide, curious eyes poke back over the top of the rock to watch the victim climb out of the bushes. Another quick, sharp laugh, this one more easily heard, is quickly stiffled as Cally withdraws her head, just in time to prevent her victim from seeing her as he glances to the rock, rubbing at his elbow before removing some leaves from his helmet. He glances down at his skateboard with a sigh, as one of the wheels has come off. Shaking his head, muttering, he tosses the deck and wheel at the nearby trash - missing it, and causing it to go partway in the bushes.
The vendor nods absently to Brian in response, turning back to the skateboarder, who makes his way over to the hotdog stand. "Can I come ice? No, don't have any? Well, I'll take a soda then. And a hotdog, while I'm at it" he says to the vendor. And said vendor seems not a bit surprised, serving both up almost as if he had them waiting. Quite possibly this has happened with the other 'victims', which would explain his lack of reporting it to the authorities.

What the.. why the shock? She does get out and about too! Sometimes. Cally meanwhile, has some kind of vendetta against cyclists or something, although Kameron sees none of it. Prince sees all - sort of - head tilted up nose to air to sniff at first the smell of hot dogs, and then the other people around him. "Yggles?" Kameron would give Brian a bewildered look if she could manage one. "You mean Ygraine? We met not long ago." Then to Ygraine, "And I met Brian about a month ago. Why are you both so surprised?" Naturally, she does not notice Old and Grumpy -yet.

A flash of skull white over denser rock is enough to prompt a narrowing of Deckard's eyes in that direction. Not one to interfere in ill-intended chaos, he fails to comment on the presence of the skateboarder's probable assailant, and turns instead to follow his progress back to the vendor. Where…a Brian is waiting in line.
A Brian who is holding hands with a chick, and…a little kid. From his post well behind the hot dog guy's shoulder, he knits his brow and lets his jaw slack slightly open. The hell.

Ygraine chuckles softly, darting a glance to JoeJoe, before smirking at his adult companions. "Well… Brian's the sort of guy who invites his work colleagues to come into the showers because he has something to show them", she teases - albeit with a rather warm smile. "How're you doing?" The question sounds like rather more than a polite formality, distinct concern not wholly concealed behind the mundane words.

Ygraine is delivered a sharp glance. The hell! Glancing over to Kameron, judging a reaction. He then looks down to Joe. Seriously, in front of a kid? Taking out his wallet, Brian pulls out a ten dollar bill. Tucking the wallet back into the recesses of his pockets he leans over to take Kameron's hand. Sliding the bill into her hand. "You should get some food for you and Joejoe." He suggests, giving her hand a little squeeze.
Taking a step forward, a playful gentle shove is aimed at Ygraine's shoulder. Something that rhymes with 'bass' is muttered as he steps past her and sets his course on Deckard. The slackjaw look is noted, and Brian greets with a simple middle finger. His back is to Joe after all. Though his tone is very pleasant. "Heeey, buddy." Glare.

The once-skateboarder walks off down the path after receiving the soda and hotdog. Not long after, the blonde girl head pokes up once more over the top of the rock, peering down the path. No noise or side of other skateboarders, rollerskaters, or otherwise can be seen. Then her head turns, eyes locking on the trashcan, and the skateboard abandoned nearby. Her mouth twists in a bright smile, as Cally grabs up her satchel, and quickly and rather agiley climp-leaps down the rock, scrabbling over to the skateboard. She grabs it up, and a moment later the wheel as well. Glancing around to see if she is being watched, she quickly ducks behind the bushes out of sight.

Money pressed into her hand, Kameron is confused for a second, by Brian moving on. Erm — How much did he give her? At Ygraine's comment, Kameron blinks behind mirrored sunglasses, and then her lips twist into an amused grin. "You're pulling my leg. He's been nothing but a perfect gentlemen while he's been staying with me." Staying on the couch and everything. Merrily digging herself a little grave in -some- fashion, though she's no clue how or why!

She pads forward to the hot dog vender, a hand reaching out to gauge distance as she continues to her friend, "Pretty good - how about you?" She gives Prince a little slack on the leash, letting the collie pad forward to give Ygraine a sniff of greeting. And use his own Evolved gift to command the human girl to PET HIM.
That's right, he's got Persuation. You can't deny those puppydog eyes. "Excuse me, how much is this?" She inquires of the vendor, holding Joe by the hand. "What would you like Joe?"
Of course, Ygraine has a slight window of opportunity to do this petting, before the collie's attention swivels towards the rustle of a nearby bush. It could just be a squirrel or something, but his hackles are up. A low growl suddenly makes itself present in the collie's throat, alerting Kameron to -something-. Her eyes open briefly behind the shades, and with a brief wince, she blinks, vision switching - much to her relief, NOT to X-ray vision. She'd rather not see Ygraine's organs, please and thank you. Infrared is go, and rather casually she directs her attention towards the bush that Prince is offended by.

"Did you steal that kid from a daycare somewhere to get laid?" That's Deckard's version of a 'heeey, buddy,' all furrowed brow and too-serious curiosity. He has just enough manners to keep his voice down out of easy overhearing range of Joe and Kameron, but he is definitely, definitely looking at the latter's ass. His sunglasses don't do a much better job of hiding that than they do the fact that he recently got his ass handed to him in a fist fight.
But (butt)! There's something going on over there. The dog's growling at the skeleton that belongs to the skull he saw earlier, now in the process of accessorizing with a broken skateboard. "Central Park is weird."

Ygraine looks briefly crest-fallen as Brian not only fails to respond well to her humour, but completely blanks her worried concern for his well-being. She's glad to be able to sink into a crouch and ruffle Prince's ears, offering a distracted "Oh, surviving, thanks" to Kameron's own query. Her gaze, like the dog's, is drawn to the flurry of motion and the rustling bush. For the moment, at least, she resists the temptation to step in and assist Kameron, but hopes that the vendor'll realise this isn't a good chance to try to pull another fast one.

"I killed his parents, so I would have a lifetime guarantee." Brian retorts in a snarl. Looking over his shoulder at Kameron and Joe. "His name is Joseph. He was abandoned in the midst of that big battle day. He's Evolved." His voice is low. "Oh hey. Do you think you could train her to use her vision better?" He indicates with his head to where Kameron stands, unaware that Deckard is already thinking about training of some sort. "She has like different types of vision or whatever. Anyways, what do you want? One of the glocks you gave me is all jammed, you need to fix it."
Stepping to the side, to obscure (partially) Deckard's view of Kameron and company, he looks to where the disturbance of the bush was. "Really weird." He affirms. "You see that guy trip over a stick." A little smile bubbles on his lips. Hee. Pain.
Meanwhile Joe is pulling down on Kameron's hand in an attempt to fully see what type of goodies are available. "Pizza." He answers with a broad smile to his pseudo-temporary-part-time mom. "And a soda." Smile. "Please." It's an afterthought.

Deckard isn't the only one who glances to Kameron's ass. The vendor does as well, thus would explain why he (likely accidentally) gives her a really good deal on her order.
The bushes rustle again, preceeding Cally coming out from behind them, wiping leaves off as she drags out her satchel… and the skateboard. Which has all four wheels attached. She heads over towards the hotdog stand, pausing only to give a 'oh cute look' to the growly dog. Cal then directs her attention to the vendor, snapping her fingers at the guy as she steps up to the side of the cart. "Yo, Mack, eyes front. I'll trade you this skateboard for a hotdog and Coke, k? And none of that rolled on the ground stuff. A fresh, good hotdog. It's a good deck, see?" She holds it up for inspection.
"What am I going to do with a skateboard, Cally? And the wheel's probably loose, otherwise that fellow wouldn't have left it behind, would he?" He frowns thoughtfully at her for a moment, then glances to the rock, as if considering the custom she brought her. And then glances back to her, considering the hungry way she eyes the hotdogs on display. He lets out a quick sigh, shrugging, and gathers up a hotdog and can of soda. "It's on the house this time, Cally. But only this once. Next time, you need money, see? I got a family to pay for."
"Thanks, Mack!" Cally beams at the big, greasy hot dog man as if he is Santa, practically bouncing on her heels as she waits for her meal.

Kameron probably ends up giving an inadvertent opportunity - more than one - just because she's not conscious of people checking her out. Shaame - only not. She does lean down when Joe tugs on her hand. "Pizza?" She puzzles, "Do they sell pizza at a hot dog vendor's truck?" This may be directed towards Ygraine, an attempt to distract her from whatever might be troubling her. She heard that tone.
Cally's emerging from behind the bush gets Prince's growls to subside only -slightly-. The collie is still glowering at her, ears perked forward and only acknowledging the petting from Ygraine after the fact. He's being good tonight - good and focused. Well no matter - she would probably be pretty surprised by the cheesecake discount, smiling in the direction she presumes the vendor would be, "Thank you. And make that two sodas." She wasn't hungry. "Are you getting anything Ygraine?"

"Mmm," says Deckard. "Good thinking." Joseph, abandoned, big battle day. Good for him. He catches bits and pieces, distraction clear in the hazy nod he uses to agree to request for training and gun repair that follow when Brian steps between him and Kameron, and he looks back to Ygraine instead. Why hasn't Brian introduced him to any of these people before? What a jerk.
Then Cally is bouncing. Bouncing. Flint draws in a deep breath, slow to look back at Brian's face, and slower still to try to catch up on what he half-heard. Evolved, jamming, training…training? "Wait, what?"

"I'm fine, thanks", responds Ygraine - mustering a grateful smile as she also lifts her gaze to Kameron's rear view, albeit for somewhat different reasons to some others present. Cally earns a distinctly curious look, but now doesn't seem the sort of time or place to pry too openly into remarkably quick-fix skills being displayed. Instead, she resumes fussing over Prince… while making sure that his nose never gets too close to the bagged hot dog stuffed into one pocket. Fortunately, she seems to be pretty much wholly oblivious to the battered older man who's so securely holding Brian's attention.

Frowning, Brian turns around to see what Deckard has been staring at. His eyes first go to Kameron, then Ygraine, then finally Cally. His lips turn into a frown as he turns back, there were options. But just in case— A firm punch is deliverd to Deckard's shoulder. "You pedophile." He hisses. "You're at least forty years older than her." Her being Kameron, just so happening to have Brian's protection instincts as of now. "I'm a Lieutenant in the club now." He informs, pedophilia being dropped rather quickly. He gives a little grin as if it's hard for him to believe. "I can appoint you sargeant if you want. We could call you Sarge. Or just keep calling you OldGuy. Anyways—what the hell did you bring me out here for? And if you keep staring at breasts I'm going to punch you in the mouth."
Meanwhile Joe is finally conceding to the fact that he might not get pizza from the hot dog vendor. His hand drops from Kameron's hand as he marches his little feet around the vendor to survey Cally and her broken skateboard. Eyeing her, the boy looks up and with a smile offers, "Hi."
The bouncy teen collects her hotdog and soda from Mack the Greasy Hotdog Vendor with a last, bright smile. Who, as it turns out, does not have pizza. But does have a hot dog that he claims is five times better then pizza!

Turning around, Cally gazes about, frowning thoughtfully. Deckard's staring goes unnoticed, as she apparently tries to locate a good place to sit. Lacking a nearby park bench, she shrugs to herself, plopping down on a nearby rock (a seat sized one, not the humungo one she was on earlier) curling her legs under her, and begins to chow down on the hot dog. As in, stuffing her face like a prison inmate or extremely hungry fat kid. Or a street kid, as it were.

Prince is - for the most part, a good collie. He is still a puppy, so while he may wander away from Kammy at times (which is fine since she can kinda sorta see sometimes), he was trained to not steal people food. Even if it was tantalizingly close to his nose. Which twitches lightly as its sniffs - more importantly, Joe is now wandering around!
The collie pulls lightly on the leash, whining with the want of following the smaller boy, anxious and protective. Especially now that Joe is now conversing with An Unknown, and the collie doesn't like that. Kameron, on getting her change back, doesn't question it and simply tucks it into her back pocket, gathering the plate, and balancing the drinks against her other arm — which makes for some interesting juggling since she's carrying a dog leash too. Hrm. "So did you do anything interesting after you left the Cathedral the other day?" Back to 'Iggy'. Or 'Yggles'.

Deckard jostles back from the blow, all wiry muscle and bone under grey suit and greyer coat. It's probably a little like punching a door frame.
"I'm forty-two." It's all he can do not to take a swing of his own, right hand clasped bare over his left shoulder while the pain there ebbs out into the cold. He's indignant, scowling, head stooped and teeth nipped bare around the proclamation of his age, and the muttered, "Asshole," that follows.
"Congratulations." That's for the promotion, presumably, though his glare is already trailing more reproachfully back to the women who just got him socked in the shoulder. "I hope you get kidnapped by an annoying pack of teenaged terrorists if you live to be my age. Abigail's missing. The rest…" The rest. Darker distaste hollows at his bristled jaw, and he shakes his head sligtly. "I didn't know you were going to bring the whole fucking family."

Ygraine gives Prince's ears a last ruffle as he pulls away from her, then rises to her feet and slightly arches her back. "Mmmm? Oh. Not massively." Her gaze momentarily flickers to Brian, but the brief flurry of movement doesn't appear to presage a more serious confrontation. "Been rather a quiet month thus far…" She turns her back on the two men, to better focus upon Kameron, delving into her jacket's deep pockets to retrive the coffee first of all.

It's probably good Kameron can't see him beating up on senior citizens, and that Joe is too busy peering at Cally like she was some kind of fascinating animal. "Family day in the park." Brian spits back, "You didn't tell me to come alone. I know Abby's gone." His eyes go downcast for a moment, his hands flexing for a moment. "Got any leads?" The young man asks, not expecting anything. "What do you want?"
Joseph moves closer to Cally, looking back to see if Prince has got his back on this somewhat risky maneuver. Being ignored once is nothing that will shake the little invulnerable boy. Joe takes another step forward to where Cally basks on a rock greedily scarfing down her food. "Hii" The boy repeats in a sing songy voice.

Once the hotdog is gone (and rather fast, at that) Cally spends a moment licking her finger tips (somewhat dirty fingertips, though that doesn't seem to stop her), before she cracks open her can of Coke. She closes her eyes in sweet enjoyment just at the sound, that clear crisp *kkkrrrksshhh* as the seal is broken and the compressed carbonated air escapes.
Just as she's raising the can to her lips, Cal notices Joe approaching her. She greets him with a smiliar 'oh cute' smile that she gave to the growly puppy, and shw waves to him, then offering her hand to shake in mock-serious greeting. "Hi there! What's your name? I'm Cally."

She's tempted to ask Ygraine to give her a hand - but she's too stubborn to give in to what might be common sense. Besides, waitresses have to manage a lot worse than two drinks, a plate with a hot dog and a seeing eye hound. "So what did you do?" Kameron asks curiously. A short pause follows, and she seems to give a mental jumpstart to her mind, remembering something Ygraine had said, "Oh - you said you had a fiancee, right?"
One short whistle get's Prince's attention, and the dog quickly backs up to her side, staring intently towards Joe and Cally. One wrong move..
And it will not end well. The dog very much "has Joe's back" in his courageous endeavor, and Prince is even a bit impatient, waiting for Kameron to start moving so he can get towards the two quickly. Such is the trial that leads a double life - that of a seeing eye dog and a guard dog.

"No." No leads. Deckard's expression closes off further still, brow hooded and jawline hardened by anger that isn't necessarily directly related to the conversation so far. "I didn't think you had any friends. Other than her. I'm not…it's not…" Important, really. Except that it kind of is. He shakes his head again, already tousled hair further ruffled by the shrill whistle of another blast of wind.
"I'm not talking about it here. Why don't you introduce me to your friends? That would be the polite thing to do."

Ygraine also keeps one eye on Joe and the skateboard-acquiring highwaywoman, but manages a smile for Kameron. "Yes, I do. I'm spending a fair bit of time with her at the moment. Things were rather… hectic for a few weeks, and we could do with some time for our lives to calm down…"

"Of course I have friends. I'm not you." Brian retorts a tad hotly. Abby as his only friend that would be.. a frustrating life to be sure. "Periwinkle van." Brian mutters, angrily. But then the subject is changed. "Fine, we'll talk about it later. What am I going to say, hey guys this is my armsdealer! Hope you all get along." Looking over his shoulder once again, he looks back to Deckard. "Listen, Dickard. I really like this girl, so don't be an asshole, alright? And, I don't know if you've seen a kid since sixty years ago, but don't cuss in front of him."
With the ground rules laid out, Brian turns his back on grumpy and starts back toward the Hot Dog stand, waving his hand over his shoulder to signal the man to follow. Once they arrive, "Girls, this is my—" My what? "My step-cousin's… uncle. Mike. Mike, this is Ygraine," A hand indicating Ygraine, and then a little smile. "And Kammy."
Over in Adventureland, Joe gets a broad smile putting his hand out to shake the girl's hand very much thinking it serious business. "Joe…Joe." Brian always calls him JoeJoe, why the man always calls his name twice is beyond him. He figures Brian thinks he can't hear well or something. "JoeJoe. Hi Cally. Did you throw a stick?"

"JoeJoe. Very nice to meet you, Mister JoeJoe. And hmm?" Cally shakes the boy's hand firmly, and rubs at her chin with her hand once it releases his. Eyeing him thoughtfully, she leans closer, giving him a broad wink. "Do you promise to keep it a secret if I said I did, little buddy?" she asks him. She grins, even before he can answer, still leaning forward to hear his answer, though tilting back just a bit so she can bring the soda can to her lips slowly, about to take a really good, long, delicious sip of long awaited soda.

It's a veeeery, very good thing Kameron has shades, because her eyes pop open in surprise when Ygraine identifies the fiancee as a her. Not him, but her. UH. Not sure what to say to that, given a rather ..conservative background with less than open minded parents. Kameron draws breath to say something along the lines of 'congratulations', which is the sort of thing that one should say when Brian approaches with his Step-cousin's Uncle Deckard.
"It's nice to meet you, Mike." Kameron greets pleasantly. She doesn't offer to shake his hand, because - well! Her hands are full! While Kameron is busy juggling drinks and food, she doesn't pay mind to the leash when it slips to the ground. Prince, his attention fully on the Joe and Cally, completely jumps the gun because Cally just made a move. A (completely unthreatening) move that Prince totally noticed earlier and neglected to act upon because his owner fails at reading comprehension! The SLACKER. What's worse, Cally leaning forward clearly is an indication of her about to -bite- the child.
Ahem. The dog lunges forward into Adventureland with a sharp -bark-, followed by a startled yip from Kameron, who turns with a frown of concentration, trying to determine which way the dog went. On the plus side Prince doesn't bite or snap at Cally - he does move to wedge himself in between Joe and Cally though, barking up a storm. Apparently he was worried Cally had germs. Maybe.

"English professor," Deckard corrects lowly in the place of 'arms dealer,' resigned to the promise of talking some other time. A tall, lean shadow at Brian's shoulder, he unwisely lets him do the rest of the making up of relationships, blue eyes rolling behind the stark sheen of his sunglasses at his announcement as a step-cousin's uncle. Still. He manages to force a smile, genuine enough via years of experience working half of his hometown over with false charm.
"Pleasure," he says to Kameron, because it is. He very pointedly does not look at anything below her neck, conscious of the fact that Brain is still in punching range and probably paying attention. A hand is offered out Ygrainewards, only to pause halfway there when the dog goes bounding off after Cally and Kid. He freezes a little, thought process jammed up on trying to determine the collie's intentions. His hand is quicker to act than his brain — it dips back under the lapel of his coat. … Maybe he has an itch.

Ygraine can't help but raise a brow at "Uncle Mike" and the wonderfully stilted introduction he receives from Brian. Inwardly wondering if there's an innocent explanation for whatever he's done to make Brian so seemingly unhappy to be seen with him, she nonetheless manages a smile for his benefit. "Hi", she says, swapping her hotdog into her left before clasping his hand in her own gloved fingers, shaking firmly. Her gaze does track that movement into his coat, prompting her to look to Kameron. "I should be on my way. Just stopped to grab some food", she informs the woman as cheerfully as she can manage, determinedly _not_ looking back to see if Deckard might have taken hold of whatever he has concealed within his jacket. Instead, she dips into her own, pressing a card - for Alley Cat Courier Services, with a cell number on the back - into her hand. "I'm sure that you can find some young helper to read that for you, should you want to get hold of me."

Frowning after Prince, "I'll get him, Kammy." But his eyes go to Deckard's hand and his brows shoot up. "Uncle Mike! Why don't you tell Kammy about your.. job. Thing." He eyes all the stuff Kameron is juggling. "Let me help." He urges one hand going to give her shoulder a squeeze, the other to secure.. something from her. Once that is done he will go after Prince. A glance is sent over his shoulder to Ygraine. A look that says more than just a gaze. He purses lis lips for a moment before looking back. "Prince! Come here."
"Mister." A little giggle is let out from the boy, and he smiles broadly, nodding emphatically as she leans forward to give him secrets. But then Prince comes and totally blows his cover. Delivering the dog a flustered look, Joe takes a step forward. This isn't the first time Prince has scared potential friends. Joe starts petting at Prince, trying to get him to stop.

It's too late. No amount of heroics can save the day. ALL IS LOST! That is right. All. Is. Lost.
The loud barking, and sudden appearance of the dark is surprising, to say the least. Especially when it appears right near Cally , practically barking in her face. The can of soda, the one that is so precious above all else, for someone who has not enjoyed a can of soda in so long? Needless to say, it slips out of her hand as she is momentarily surprised, jumping to her feet. The can falls, splashing her with the soda inside, and then pouring out in a puddle on the ground. And she never. Even. Got. One. Sip.
A scream escapes her lips. A howl of such rage and fury as has never been uttered over a spilled beverage before. And it is around that time that the temperature in the area? Spikes. From about thirty degrees, to over ninety rather quickly, if not more. Steam pours off the ground at the sudden temperature shift, and the spilled soda on Cally's shirt begins to dry.

"Thanks." Kameron smiles gratefully at Brian, letting him take the hot dog so she can handle the drinks. Much better. This allows her to take the card that Ygraine was offering to her, nodding with a smile, "Thank you Ygraine; it was great se-..uh.. talking to you. Take it easy okay?" As the woman prepares to depart, Kameron slips the card into her pocket with Brian's change. Turning her attention to Dec, that is, Mike, Kameron smiles, "So, you're an English Professor?" She's confident Brian will get Prince back - but apparently, not before things get worse.
Meanwhile, in Adventureland, Prince is very confused. Here it is his job to protect, and Joe is not letting him protect! Honestly. Prince takes his eyes off of Cally for a moment, his growl abating briefly, but he stays put. Nope, nothin' doin. He moves away from the kid and that's when this evil girl will strike. AND STRIKE SHE DOES. By making it so hot that it will force people to remove their heavy coats. The pup's growling turns into a yelp of surprise when steam suddenly starts to rise from the ground, and he gives a brief distracted lick to Joe's arm at the petting. Yes yes, good dog, now let's move away from the person turning into her very own oven please and thank you.
He barks once more are Cally, shifting weight from paw to paw in discomfort at the sudden steam. Kameron, makes a mistake in turning in the direction of the current fuss, past 'Mike' when the heat suddenly spikes up, and her head rocks backwards with a sudden flinch, followed by a slight biting of her lower lip. Not a word is said. OHGODwas that ever a bad idea. If she had bemoaned her blindness with just the infrared, it was a thousand times worse -NOW-. It was as if she had her eyes closed, only this time her eyes were stinging like she'd just looked into the sun. Ow.

"Aaah…" says Deckard, somewhat less than intelligently while he watches the hate triangle comprised of Cally, Kid, and Barking Dog. As the latter doesn't seem to be making any kind of hasty transition into Biting Dog, he allows his hand to fall stutteringly back to his side. Empty. "Yeaah." English Professor. Right.
As blind to steam as he is to heat, Deckard narrows one last automatic glance down after the ass end of Ygraine's retreat before he half-focuses back on the ongoing altercation. Past the initial grab for the interior of his coat, he's oddly non-reactionary until the heat hits, and Kameron becomes a living bobblehead. His hand goes automatically to brace over her shoulder, steadying even as he squints against the cloying wash of it. "The fuck is that—"

Though she would often respond to such a threatening display of power - and temper - by attempting to protect those more vulnerable than herself, Ygraine is not only further from the enraged Evolved than some others, she is also very much aware of the presence of "Uncle Mike" close by. Let the apparently-armed possibly-undercover cop or Fed deal with the threat: she's not going to be anywhere nearby if - or when - the boys in blue show up. There's a lingering, guilty look towards Kameron, Joe, and Prince… but then she's striding away from the scene at speed, to all appearances rather freaked out by the weirdness and noise.

"Prince" Wow. That's really hot, raising up an arm as if to block something, which cannot be blocked. His eyes go into a glare. He's had an experience with this power, or at least a varaint of it. And the memories trigger the angries. Just for a moment. A young woman hanging around a park, begging for food, who happens to be an Evolved. Chances are, she's not registered. His eyes shoot around to see who else would have noticed this sudden heat spike. But first Looking back to Kameron, concern overcomes his features, but Dickard seems to be helping her. He hasn't made a decision whether or not that's a good thing.
The leash is snatched up, as well as Joe's hand. Brian does his best to act unphased by the tidal wave of warmth. "I'll buy you a soda." He offers quietly. "But I really suggest you take a walk with me and my friends. You don't want to be here if someone decides to call SCOUT or Homesec." Which one's worse, he's not sure.

Cally's outrage is rather short-lived, when she realizes what has happened. Her mouth falls open, looking about as surprised as everyone else… though for different reasons. The temperature begins to lessen, not overly noticeable at first. But then her head whips around, and for a brief second, a terrified look forms on her features at Brian's words. It's incredibly brief, but at the same time, the temperature? Drops back down immediately, even down past the original, making it colder then before.
"Um… huh? Cops? Why would I be afraid of them? Ain't done nothing wrong. Ain't my fault your mutt here attacked me. But, uh… I left the oven on, right? And I gotta go and make sure it don't burn the house down, see? So, uh… thanks for your concern, but you don't gotta worry bout me. Later." This is all said in a quick rush, as Cally gathers her composure. Slinging her satchel over her shoulder, and grabbing up her pilfered skateboard, she quickly rushes down the path.
Mack, the hotdog vendor, meanwhile, exclaims a curse when one of his left out sodas explode from the rapid temperature shifts.

For the most part, a good 75% of the time, Kameron can't see by choice. With an overloading of the infrared brought on by all that heat that Cally was giving off, it was being unable to see -period-. Nothing but red, orange, and yellow -and honestly? It's terrifying.
Then she reminds herself she can't see -ANYWAY- so it's silly to fuss over what she hopes and prays is momentary, forcing her eyes shut behind her shades. And there is suddenly a hand bracing her shoulder, to which she manages a grateful, somewhat embarassed, "Thank you." On the plus side, it saves 'Mike' from having to talk Shakespeare and things at Kammy!
Prince is offended by the term 'Mutt'. He is Collie American! Canine-American. Something. But he is also forced to behave when the leash is nabbed, barking subsiding into growls as Cally hastily makes an attempt to escape. YOu better run! As for the temperature, as it drops, Kameron's sight starts to gradually … sort of get better. It's slow, but less like a landscape of nothing but red, and she's able to distinguish actual -shapes-. In time to more or less 'see' Cally start to make a break for it anyway.
Prince glances up at Brian, tail wagging hesitantly. He's perfectly willing to go after the runaway girl, even if that wouldn't be wise.

Deckard lets go quickly enough when it becomes clear Kameron isn't about to keel over, breath fogging thick and lungs burning against the return of winter's chill at full force. His hand trails down, thinking about it, thinking about it — but behaves in the end, and drops well away before it reaches anything close to the T or A regions. No bad touching, even if the situation is ideal for making it look accidental.
Cally's making a run for it, meanwhile, if in the opposite direction of Ygraine, and "Uncle Mike" looks to Brian a little warily. Way to work those people skills, scooter.

"I'm the same as you." Brian calls out after Cally. "I can help you." His hand remaining firm on the leash, he won't release it no way. If the girl decides to stop and hear him out he'll advance, but if she chooses to run that's her decision. Looking down to Joe he gives a little smile, going to ruffle his head a little bit. "You okay buddy?" He glances back up to Cally, to see whether she decides to keep running or return.

Cally? Keeps running. See Cally run. Run Cally, run. Pretty soon, she's out of sight.
Mack, looking at a total loss as to what happened, seems not to have reached the conclusion everyone else did. He only notices the girl running away as Brian calls out to her. Mack sighs to himself, shaking his head as he wipes off the counter of the hotdog stand. "Poor girl. Hope she finds a place for herself."

Hurray for self control! Kameron is none the wiser of the almost-but-didn't, resisting the urge to remove her shades and rub her eyes until the stinging sensation goes away. But with Cally gone and the temperature dropping back to normal, she instead breathes out a long sign, eyebrows drawn downward into a puzzled, concerned frown. Especially when Brian clearly wanted to reach out to the girl and help her - and overhearing the words from Mack, Kameron turns towards the voice, "She's alone..?"

"Next time, try offering the soda without the potential promise of an eternity behind bars," Deckard offers helpfully from Kameron's side, increasingly numb hands rubbed roughly over each other against the stinging cold before they're shoved back down into his pockets.

"Thanks, uncle Mike." Taking the hand of Joe (who is eating the hotdog the player forgot about until now), Brian casts a final gance after the fleeing Cally before leading Joe and Prince back to Kameron and Deckard. "We should probably get out of here." He suggests to the other two.

"Near as I can tell," Mack says in reply to Kameron, shaking his head with another sigh as he finishes wiping up, moving to check on the temperature of the hotdogs. "She just showed up, middle of last week. Been hanging around the park alot. Think she might be staying nearby. She was able to scrounge some cash the other day, gave her two hotdogs. But don't think she had enough for soda, too. Shame that she spilt it, don't think she's had any for awhile. But I've seen it before. Kids misplaced by the bomb, or just afraid… parents could be those Evolved types, too, and she ran away to escape em. Who knows. Nice kid though." Even if she was making people trip with sticks. Mack sighs, moving to close down and pack up the cart. Guess the hotdogs got cold.

"Okay," Kameron answers Brian with a slow nod. The soda is considered, and then dismissed - she doubts Joe will want warm soda. It kinda beat the purpose. Her head turns in the direction that Cally went, speculative, and once her hands are free, she reaches out to take Prince's leash. "She ran away..?" And because of Prince's overprotectiveness, she didn't even get to have her soda. Now Kameron feels like a Bad Person(tm). She'll have to make it up to Cally when she se…runs into…- sp.. when they meet again. If they meet again. "OH," she digs into her back pocket and withdraws the change, "Thank you for the hot dogs, sir," she asides to Mack, holding her hand out to return the money to Brian.

"No problem, cuz." Not in too much of a rush to go fleeing all conspicuous-like, Deckard hesitates for long enough to watch the exchange between Mack and the others before he dips his head and turns on his heel. Back to whatever hole he crawled out of. "Have a nice evening."

Taking Kameron's hand he goes to put Prince's leach into it. Turning to face Deckard. "Alright. I'll talk to you soon. Mike." Brian murmurs, urging Joe ahead of him. One shoulder pressing against Joe's back. His other arm links around the shoulders of Kameron, guiding the pair away from the hot dog stand, Mack, and Uncle Mike.

"Ah, hmm?" Mack says, obviously a bit taken aback at being referred to as sir. And by someone whose butt he had stared at not so long ago. Puffing himself up, beaming at Kameron, he dips his head to her, wiping a greasy hand over greasy hair. "Of course, of course. You're very welcome. Come back any time now, m'dear."
Meanwhile, at the entrance to the park, Cally stops to catch her breath. She glances back the way she came, checking to see if she was followed. After a moment, she continues on, clutching her newly aqquired skateboard under one arm, muttering under her breath, "I heart New York. Yeah right. Stupid T-shirt obviously was never attacked by small barking dogs."


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February 13th: River Of Dreams
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February 13th: From Here We All Float
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