An Evening of Blood and Thunder

[alderwitch]

"I don't have a strong desire one way or the other. I'm just telling you not to protect my sensabilities," Taylor slipped out of her seat and twisted, one hand going to her throat to resettle the Eye of Heshem thoughtfully. "If it bothers you, I can walk away. I just don't feel a special need to do so. I would like to know if he's going to be problematic as I blasted him while dressed like this."

She gestured down to the jeans and top. The jeans would definately need to be washed after the scramble from the car and run through the brush. Taylor frowned and swiped at the patch of dirt on one knee and considered that she should have hit him harder with that force blast. "I'm just glad he didn't manage to get me with the crowbar. Unshielded that would have hurt."

[Avenger Assembled]

Jack stopped to change into costume before they did their work, his change for her the first time he'd actually let anyone see him put Avenger on. First came the heavy turtleneck, then the black leather jacket, then the heavy motorcycle gloves, and then finally the black ski mask and white hockey mask. When he turned around, the tall, elegant Jack was replaced by the short, growling Avenger. He hefted the crowbar. "May wish to transform as well. Best to keep him off-balance."

[alderwitch]

Even watching the transformation, Taylor blinked once at the stark difference once he spoke. So that's what that felt like. It gave her a bit better understanding at the looks Stesha gave her when she shifted between identites. She shook off the reflection, and the added distraction of watching Jack dress, and reached up slender fingertips to the Eye. Between one second and the next, shadows wreathed her body and the cloak billowed out from her shoulders. Automatically she floated up so that the cloak didn't drag on the ground.

"I have no idea if he's come to in there or not," she warned, her voice echoing oddly as it usually did when she went insubstantial. The cloak rippled before ejecting the prisoner from it onto the ground in an ignominous heap.

[Avenger Assembled]

Avenger's interrogation of the "lycanthropic" thug was as methodical as it was brutal. He only actually hit the man a couple of times, the crowbar rising high and coming down almost gently, the rest of the encounter one of psychological and physical intimidation that quickly had the man shifting back into his regular form out of sheer terror. He confessed that he'd been taken somewhere with "bright lights, and lots of doctors," but that he'd managed to escape when their backs were turned. He was telling the truth, or so Avenger guessed; he was certainly frightened enough. With Taylor watching, despite her obvious anger at the man, Jack obviously avoided trying many of the new tricks he'd learned after Melinda's death.

[alderwitch]

"He's telling the truth," Phantom confirmed, floating forward at that, her face expressionless behind the mask. She didn't care over much for this particular style of questioning but if she was going to be entirely honest, the only real difference is she usually pummeled the fight out of people before starting in on the questions rather than during.

Her voice cracked out sharply, "So what were you looking for at the movie theater?"

[Avenger Assembled]

"Gonna sell it and get some stuff, lady," said the criminal, the thug frightened out of him by the sheer intensity of Avenger's interrogation. Phantom was, for once, one of the least scary things around. "Wasn't gonna do nothin' till the lady saw me." The fact that he was still telling the truth didn't say much for his innate decency, but at least it said something about his honesty while terrified. "Honest! I just wanted the keys so I could get the car when the lady saw me." Avenger dealt with that story by pinning the man to the ground with the blunt end of the crowbar.

"Suggest you had other things in mind. Suggest you are the dog you pretend to be. Only one punishment for monsters. Unless you can redeem yourself. Confess your sins? To the police?" Seizing on the opportunity given him, the frightened young man nodded, eyes wide as he looked from one face to the other.

"Yeah. Yeah, sure!"

"Will find you if you do not. Will punish you. You understand?" Avenger never had handed out worse than just a beating, but the persona he projected was frightening enough that a young skell like this could believe nearly anything of him. The criminal nodded at that, eyes still very wide.

[alderwitch]

Phantom watched the interrogation concealed within the folds of her cloak. Jack was so convincing that even she halfway believed him despite herself. As he babbled out his reasons, she shifted slightly, her cloak rippled with agitation.

She hadn't been terrified but Taylor was anything but helpless. Another woman wouldn't have been so lucky.

"I can drop him off at the station. It's a bit of a walk. I'd hate to see him get cold feet.."

[Avenger Assembled]

"Drop him there," Avenger agreed, sliding the crowbar back into his belt. "Will meet you back here and we can finish our business. Phantom." He glared at the thug, shooting a look of murder that made the man shudder in terror and scootch away from him until he was much closer to Phantom. "You know what to do if he give any trouble."

[alderwitch]

"Of course," Her smile was a cool sliver of white under the hood's shadow. "I dangle him upside down off a roof top until he appologizes or passes out."

The cloak rippled as he approached and without giving the man a warning, Phantom absorbed him into the depths before she winked out of the clearing herself. She was quite familiar with the closest police department and took their captive there directly. It took her several long minutes of explaining a summary of events to the officers before she blinked back into the field once more and solidified.

[Avenger Assembled]

Jack was waiting for Taylor when she landed, having discarded his Avenger costume back into his trunk. He smiled up at her, still tossing his new crowbar back and forth from hand to hand. "Hey there. Our boy all taken care of?" He stood up, neatly sliding the crowbar back into his belt. "I think we handled him pretty good." He looked much more relaxed than she'd seen him last, the grim Avenger persona finally shed.

[alderwitch]

The cloak and costume fell away, leaving her in the clothing she'd worn out this evening. Unfortunately, the patch of dirt on the knee remained. Only her costume ever seemed to get magically cleaned with this spell.

"I left before he moved onto his grade school transgressions," Taylor said dryly as she approached him and tilted her head to look up at him with a little grin. "I don't think he could have been more cooperative."

[Avenger Assembled]

Jack slipped his arms around her with easy grace, smiling down at her with a warm look on his flushed skin. "So he wasn't as dumb as he looked. Good thing he was in our capable hands." He bent his head and kissed her again, lightly on the lips. "I want to see more of you." Well, he'd seen a good bit of her earlier, but he was fairly sure she knew his intent. "I want more nights like this. You, me, and the city."

[alderwitch]

Taylor slipped her arms around his waist and leaned into nuzzle his jaw, brushing teasing light kisses, "A tempting proposition, Jack. One I'd like to take you up on."

The words were a husky promise against his skin before Taylor pulled back to look at his face under the soft ambient moonlight.

"This," she said, indicating the entire evening with a nod of her head, "This was all wonderful. I haven't been able to be just myself in so long. That it was with you means even more. If you're asking me out, the answer is yes."

Taylor's cheeks dimpled, "If you're not, well, it will be very difficult to recover gracefully."

[Avenger Assembled]

"I am," Jack promised her. There, see. A nice normal relationship, a sexy date, with just one or two things off. But then, those are your fault, aren't they? "I know what you said about your schedule. And I know mine hasn't changed either. But I think we can make this thing work." He smiled at her. "Let's meet at your place next," he suggested. "I'll bring more movies over. Maybe we'll even watch them."

[alderwitch]

She tilted her head back to laugh, blushing slightly at that insinuation but she neither confirmed nor denied the assumption, "That should prove less likely to invite wolf-men attacks. At least, one can always hope, so. I'm pretty sure I don't get my security deposit back in event of super-battle."

Taylor pressed a quick kiss against his lips, "I'm easy-going when it comes to films so pick whatever you like."

[Avenger Assembled]

They made plans and schemes as they headed back to the car and got back on the road, their tastes in movies proving compatible enough for a night where neither of them expected to do much watching. Jack proved to be as affectionate on the road as he'd been violent in the park, and they shared a pleasant ride back to her place. "Shall I see you again for that next weekend?" Jack offered her. "Or whenever we set a date that doesn't interfere with our work or your classes." He grinned. "Because I do plan to interfere with you while we're together."

[alderwitch]

"Next weekend is fine, barring unforseen interdimensional activity," Taylor confirmed, as she unfastened her seatbelt once the car stopped in front of her house. With an impish grin, she scooted over the center console and into his lap to twine her arms around his neck and give him a lingering kiss. "I'll call you to confirm on Friday."

She wiggled to get out of his lap, probably wiggling a little more than was entirely neccesary if the playful smile on her lips was any indication, and scooted back over to her side to get out of the car. "I'll see you then."

[Avenger Assembled]

"I'll see you then," said Jack with a smile, watching her leave with a smile on his face. A nice, normal evening with only a few lies and one tiny little mistake. All in all, this was the best date he'd had with a normal person in years. And she is normal. A lot more normal than I am, anyway. A smile curled on his lips as he pulled away. Things were looking up for the king of Freedom City's vampires.