Some Enchanted Evening

[Sandman XI]

"I've never tried," Wesley ponders as he kicks back on the bench with Grimalkin, "I mean I can use it to mess with people's insides, but pure fleshcrafting?" Sitting up, he stretches his left hand out before his face and wraps his right hand around his wrist. With a wet, sucking pop the left hand comes off and another grows in its place. Wesley stops with a confused look to Avenger, "Wait a second. What dead flesh did you want me to work on?"

[Avenger Assembled]

Even Avenger seemed to blanch at that, if only momentarily. "Might want to warn people about that. But good. Will use that." He turned and looked at Grim. "Wesley will give me a hand..." He sighed audibly and raised his gloved hand to his mask. "Blast. Yes. Wesley and I will handle deception. Have you place to go?"

[Heritage]

At the sight of Knight's rather disturbing stunt, Grim screams and leaps up into the air, a good ten feet, before landing a short distance away in a three-point stance with a totally revolted expression on her face.

"Good God, would you warn someone about that? I nearly tossed my cookies!"

She stands and walks back over to the others.

"A place to go? Hmm; other than Carmine back at the Imperator, I don't really know anyone in the city who has a place. I guess I can check the paper for a roommate; since I don't really own anything, moving won't be much of a problem."

The young heroine frowns.

"My babies; I need to get my cats out of there. Carmine could help with that, he looked after them before, but I would like to get them back."

[Sandman XI]

Wesley fliches as Grimalkin shrieks and flies off. When Avenger warns him about warning them, he looks shocked and embarassed. "Sorry about that," he says in a dejected tone, "I really didn't mean to scare you guys." He puts his former hand behind his back as Grimalkin walks back to them. When he hears her plight about not having anywhere to stay, he perks up with a smile at Avenger, "I don't know if it would be cool with the owner, but if so, she can stay at our place."

[Avenger Assembled]

From the tone of Avenger's voice, the situation had evidently shifted for the better. "Yes. Wesley, meet me at the Atlas Stockyards in Greenbank in two hours. Grim, suggest you return home and gather what's yours expediently. Bring cats as seems prudent. Happen to know that Wesley's landlord loves cats. Has large statue of Bast in private boudoir."

[Heritage]

"Yes. Wesley, meet me at the Atlas Stockyards in Greenbank in two hours. Grim, suggest you return home and gather what's yours expediently. Bring cats as seems prudent. Happen to know that Wesley's landlord loves cats. Has large statue of Bast in private boudoir."

Grim is somewhat taken aback by the offer of lodgings, and is actually speechless for a few moments.

Whoa, this is happening so fast. And yet it would be nice to live with some new people...even if some of them are major weirdos. And how exactly is that different from where I'm living now...?

When she finally finds the right words, she seems to choose them carefully.

"I suppose I could do that...uh, how many people are living in this place? Is it like a co-op or something? Do I have to sign something, or make any kind of deposit? To be honest, I'd like to get place of my own eventually, or with just one or two roommates, preferably someone not in the, uh, 'biz', as it were. But for temporary...yeah, I guess so."

For a while she just sits there on the bench, deep in thought, working out the particulars in her head. Finally she looks up at Avenger.

"Where exactly would I go, and when? It won't take me long to get my stuff together, just a few minutes, tops; like I said, I don't own very much."

[Avenger Assembled]

"Wesley's place. And a friend's. He can direct you." Avenger laughed, just once. "My way not suitable for permanent inhabitants. You would not enjoy the place where I sleep." Well, it was more than it would be really awkward. But there was no need to dwell on that fact. "Very short task. Can get the job done quickly."

[Heritage]

""My way not suitable for permanent inhabitants. You would not enjoy the place where I sleep."

Something about the way he said that made the hair on Grim's neck stand straight up; it took her a few seconds to regain her composure, but then she caught something the masked hero had said, a few times actually..

"Uh, okay, uh...wait, is your name really Wesley? Interesting. My name's Lynn, since that's only fair."

She gets up and starts pacing as she ticks off points with her fingers.

"Okay, so I need directions or a guide, and maybe a lift back to the Imperator so I can get my stuff; I'm gonna have to be sneaky, since I can't let Pitt know I'm moving out-"

She stops and spins on her heel to face Avenger.

"Or should I make a big show of it, like I know I'm being hunted? Or like I'm 'trying' to be sneaky, but totally failing because I'm so damned scared of whoever is on my tail?"

[Avenger Assembled]

"Suggest you go at night. Let yourself be seen," replied Avenger, Jack's mind on when Pitt would be paying attention. "But not so much as to attract too much attention to yourself. And then meet up with Knight at his place? He can direct you." Avenger hardly moved as he spoke, crouching eerily like a statue on the edge of the railing. He'd have invited Grimalkin over, but he had a feeling his fellow hero would object to his lifestyle choices. Even if he wouldn't have minded hitting that.

[Heritage]

"Suggest you go at night. Let yourself be seen," "But not so much as to attract too much attention to yourself. And then meet up with Knight at his place? He can direct you."

Grim nodded as she finished putting her plans together in her head.

"Okay...yeah, I can do that."

She turns back to Wesley expectantly.

"Just tell me where and when, Mr. Freakout, and I'll be there."

[Sandman XI]

Wesley nods, "We'll pick up your stuff and then go back to my place." Focusing himself the large white feathery wings extended out of his back again. Taking a leap into the air he looks down to Grimalkin, "Would you like to fly again or are you still uneasy of my abilities."

[Heritage]

"Would you like to fly again or are you still uneasy of my abilities."

Grim sighs and rubs her face.

"No, dude, no...look, I'm fine with who you are; there's just... an adjustment period when you meet somebody with powers, y'know?"

She waves her hand and the bench disappears; she looks at the place where it stood for a few seconds, hands on hips, before turning back to Wes.

"When I did that thing, where I looked like Avenger for a second and messed with your head? That's normal to me now, because I do it all the time; it freaked you out for a bit, but now you're like, 'Okay, she does that sorta thing - now I know that.' And it's the same with the hand thing; now I know you can do weird stuff with your body, and the next time I will be a bit less freaked, and the next time a bit less, and so on."

Grim smiles and shakes her head.

"We're all human, or at least used to be, in my case; we don't handle change very well, or things that are different. You've had to deal with that your whole life, because you're a black kid in a mostly white country, which has had to suck a lot from time to time, or I dunno, maybe all the time. I'm Jewish, so I get crap a lot, but I don't wear my difference on my skin. And now you're different in your skin, in your meat and bones."

She waves her hands dismissively.

"Ah, now I'm just rambling on and on, don't listen to me. But no, despite my reaction, I don't a problem with your powers; wings would be fine."

And now she puts her hands behind her back and goes all coquettish.

"Of course, I'd think you wouldn't mind carrying me so much...it was nice, right?" ;)

[Avenger Assembled]

"Will call you with instructions, Wesley. Take the lady where she needs to go. Remember, Atlas Stockyards." By the time either Wesley or Grim had looked his way, Avenger had disappeared into the darkness of Freedom City at night, leaving the two other heroes on the roof with nothing on their hands but time. For Jack's part, he was pleased at how well everything was going. Who was to say he couldn't come up with a plan? And surely Wesley wouldn't have any serious moral objections to his plans for the pig.

[Sandman XI]

Wesley glides downward, nodding as Grimalkin speaks. Trying his very best not to be rude, he stays quiet. Adjustment, he he smiles politely as he thinks, I understand. Yeah that Avenger thing was freaky. I guess showing her what else I can do is out of the question. The smiles drops when she starts talking about race. He stops nodding and take a more concerned-for-her look. I knew this was gonna come up, he thinks, 'Wesley I like you, really I do, it's just that you're not gonna fit into my friends and family. We could still see each other, right?' Yeah, I can do used. He smiles at the stealth invitation, "We can do that," he steps behind her, putting his arm around her waist and lifts off a little. Wesley stops when he hears Avenger's words, looking down to confirm that he understands, but the stealthy hero had already slipped into the night. "Now, which way to your place," Wesley asks as he continues into the air.

[Heritage]

"Now, which way to your place,"

Grim sighs deeply as she begins to gently trace the muscles of Wes' arm under his sleeve with her fingertips.

"Mmm, I live in the Fens, at the crappy Imperator Hotel; I'll point it out to you when we get there."

She looks over her shoulder up at his handsome face.

"Can you, like, grow extra arms or tentacles and still keep the wings? It might help with carrying my stuff. We've got three cat carriers, a box of food, a small cooler and a bag of clothes, and that's it. Oh, and my chin-up bar. I can fly solo, too, if you wing me again."

She adjusts herself slightly in his grip and sighs again.

"But, y'know, no rush or anything; take your time."

[Sandman XI]

"Hm, I've never tried to grow extra useful appendages before," Wesley ponders aloud, "I guess there's a first time for everything." He chuckles, "and yeah, you can have the wings again." Trying to make the cold weather and the ride a little bit more comfortable for him and his passenger, he warms both of their body temperatures. It takes a while to get to the intended destination, having never been there before.

[Heritage]

Through use of landmarks, verbal instructions and good old-fashioned pointing, Grim eventually guides Wes to the vaguely sinister Imperator Hotel in the Fens, with it's crumbling Greco-Roman terra cotta facade; the lowest floors are shrouded in darkness, the top two floors appear to be dimly illuminated from within, and a weird green light flickers around the edges of the blacked-out windows of the penthouse.

"There, that window down there on the seventh floor; that's home sweet home. Just drop me on the ledge, and I'll get us in. I'm gonna act like I'm in a bit of a rush, and might say some kinda random things; just play along, or you can play it stoic."

[Sandman XI]

"I can do stoic," Wesley says as they slowly descends to the ledge, "I can even do you one better. Just note, I'm gonna be a little bit bigger." Setting Grimalkin exactly where she pointed, he lets go of her. The generated warmth does not fade from her when she steps away. "Alright, let's try this," he says rubbing his hands together then warming them with his breath. The wings disappear into his back as he takes a dark green glow. slowly he starts to grow in height and proportion. The glow and the groing stop when he reachs about two feet larger. He crosses his arms and smiles, "Stoic and large, how's that?"

[Heritage]

"Stoic and large, how's that?"

Grim nods in approval as she takes a position in front of the window.

"Works for me."

And then without warning, she kicks the window in

"Babies, Mommy has to move, but you're coming too!"

She jumps into the darkened room, and begins moving rapidly throughout the suite; her movements are smooth, but with a frantic edge. The slightly-built heroine looks over her shoulder at Wes, and there's panic in her eyes.

"Knight, I need your help; I can't do this alone, and we don't have much time. I'll take care of the cats, you grab the food from in the bathroom. Move!"

[Sandman XI]

Nodding with a grunt, Wesley rips the window frame out with his bare hands to accommodate his new height and gerth. He looks around for the bathroom and spots it. Walking with authority, he opens the bathroom door to find a box of MREs and a cooler. He picks them both up, one in each hand. Walking out of the bathroom, he goes straight to Grimalkin, "What next?"

[Heritage]

Grim has finally managed to get the last of her cats into its cat carrier, the three plastic boxes being stacked together in the middle of the room. She stuffs her messenger uniform and a few loose belongings (was that a stuffed animal?) into her courier bag, which she ties around her waist to keep it clear of any wings that might suddenly sprout out of her back.

"What next?"

"Uh, uh, what else, what else, what else?"

She moves frantically throughout the squat, digging thorough black garbage bags and piles of stuff on the floor; it's hard to tell how much of this 'panic' is real and how much is a put-on. She spots her chin-up bar braced in a doorway.

"Okay, this is it, this is the last thing."

The tiny heroine grows an extra foot to more easily reach the bar (which she normally jumps up to, so her feet dangle) and begins furiously twisting it loose.

"So I guess you're finally outta here, huh?"

Standing in the open window is a giant winged insect, looking more like a fly than anything else but clearly no known species of arthropod; he's wearing an a-shirt and baggy cargo pants held up on his odd frame by suspenders. Somehow there is a sadness in his large compound eyes as he buzzes into the room.

"Carmine? Oh my god, I wasn't sure I'd ever see you again!"

The still-tall Grim drops the chin-up bar and runs over to him, but stops to carefully put her arms around his thorax.

"Are you in some kinda trouble, kid?"

She nods, head against what passes for his chest.

"Yeah, big time; there's a guy or guys after me, and I gotta hit the road, fast."

She untangles herself, smooths back her hair, and indicates Wes with an awkward wave of her hand.

"This is, uh, We-the Knight, or just 'Knight'. Y'know, to his friends. He's kinda helpin' me out. Knight, Carmine, Carmine, Knight."

Carmine folds his pair of spindly black arms across his chest and floats there, like a disapproving insect dad.

"Well, I don't like the looks of 'im."

The young heroine looks mortally embarrassed as she returns to her normal height and fetches the bar.

"Dude, relax, he's totally cool, plus he's standing right there! Sorry, Knight; no guy is good enough for him" :oops:

[Sandman XI]

Man, I know I shouldn't be one to talk about weird, Wesley thinks to himself as he first sees the bug man, but this is the first time I ever saw a real live mutant. He doesn't look at him with disgust or fear, more like impressed. Though he keeps his stoic demeanor like Grimalkin wants him to. He is quiet as they talk, and only speaks when spoken to. He nods to Carmine as they are introduced, "Nice to meet you, Carmine." Taking the insult about looks in stride, he chuckles. Listening to Grimalkin's embarrased apology, he quickly sees Carmine maybe a father figure or maybe her best friend. Trying to allay Carmine's fears, he smiles, "Don't worry, sir. Grimalkin will be safe. I plan to take good care of her."

[Heritage]

"Don't worry, sir. Grimalkin will be safe. I plan to take good care of her."

Carmine grunts, then leans down to stage whisper into Grim's ear.

"If he ever hurts you, I still know people."

He brings a thin leg across his throat

"Kkkk!"

The petite heroine snorts.

"Are you kidding? If he hurts me, I'll kill him myself!"

She snaps out her claws and grins to reveal row upon row of savage shark-like teeth, and her eyes go solid black, like a doll's eyes.

"Hsssss!"

But then she drops the menace, wiggles her eyebrows and winks to show she's just fooling....maybe Carmine laughs, which sounds really weird coming out of his inhuman chest.

"Okay, okay, you've sold me; you're a little badass and I don't have to worry about you all the time."

He chucks her under the chin, and then turns his attention back to Wes.

"And you, young man; you take good care of my little Grimmie, alright?"

Carmine snaps his fingers (well, he snaps something) and holds all four arms up in dismay.

"A gift, a gift, a going away present! You two finish up here, I'll be right back!"

The bug man zips out the window. Grim looks at Wes and shrugs, then places all three cat carriers on the floor, side by side, and slides the chin-up bar through all three handles. The cats are all mewling like crazy.

"Shh, shh, shh, everything's gonna be okay, alright babies? Momma's gotcha covered."

A minute later, Carmine returns with a small cardboard box, which Grim seems to recognize with glee.

"A mini-DVD player?! Oh, you sweetheart!"

"Well, it's a Korean Sony knock-off, so don't expect miracles, babydoll."

She gives him a quick kiss on the cheek, which she instantly regrets.

"Gyuh, oily prickles!"

"Hey, I told you never to do that, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did, you did."

He gives her one last hug, the looks quickly around the room.

"Okay, you two make like a tree and scram, and I'll trash the place; don't worry about your security deposit, toots, it's on the house."

"Bye, Daddy Warbugs."

"Take care, sweetheart."

She tucks the box into her messnger bag, grabs the chin-up bar and associated cats, and flashes Wes a nervous grin.

"Okay. Wing me."

[Sandman XI]

Wesley watches the exchange with smile of awe. It's been so long since he's had a real family. He almost wanted to take the bugman with them so that Lynn wouldn't be apart from him. If only it weren't for his responsibilities. He nods when Grimalkin asks for wings. A red glow surrounds both of them as he touches her cheek. The gossamer wings appear again. He looks happy for her, but is confused on why he can't give her the angelic style he gives himself. Shrinking himself down back to normal size, he sprouts four extra arms and wings of his own. Picking up everything that he had before, he nods to them both and then looks to Grimalkin, "Ready when you are."

[Heritage]

"Ready when you are."

The very instant the wings sprout out of her back, Grim leaps out the shattered window without a moment's hesitation; she has never flown under her own power until tonight, so where is this insane self-confidence coming from? Holding the chin-up bar by both ends to keep the cat carriers from sliding off, she banks to the left, swooping gracefully towards the street.

She looks back at Wes and shouts over her shoulder, "Which way?"