Kill A Man (IC)

[Avenger Assembled]

The White Lion was eager to greet the famous Hellion, giving him a firm handshake and a polite hello. He hadn't had time for much conversation with James the first time Young Freedom had rescued him, but evidently he was more than familiar with Hellion's public exploits in the months since. The White Lion was the guardian of _all_ of Dakana, even the other dimensions in which it lay, and he'd spoken enough to his counterparts to be familiar with the younger man's work. As for the social side of things, the King was a married man himself, but he didn't seem bothered by the lovely ladies paying attention to James: in fact, despite the crowded room, he was able to greet them all by name. "A king," he confided to James, "must _know_ his subjects."

Across the room, the party's majordomo, a balding Dakanan man in a tailored tux, announced in a booming voice: "Introducing the heroes of Freedom, the champions of justice! Shatterers of evil robots! Defenders of Erde! Rescuers of the Lost World! Guardians of worlds beyond! Enemies of havok and strife! Edge, Psyche, Phalanx, Wander, and Midnight: Young Freedom!" Mark was the first into the ballroom, looking very, very pleased with himself in his sparkling new costume and his shiny red bowtie, his cape flapping behind him as he made space for the others.

[Cyroa]

James shook the man's hand with a smile. "Nice to see you again. You and yourselves are remarkably consistent you know." He chuckled at the man's reference to the ladies and would have responded. However, the announcement of his friends entrance cut him short.

He turned with the crowd to watch them enter. He clapped and cheered along with everyone else. James, despite his social tendencies, wasn't one to hog the spotlight. Which was rather obvious considering his multiple 'jobs', now that he thought about it. His friends though...They deserved it. He clapped, whistled and cheered as the spotlight shone on the heroes of Young Freedom. His friends.

[Electra]

"Thanks," Erin murmured to Trevor as she took his arm and followed Mark and their Dakanan escort into the ballroom. She wasn't quite prepared for the grand introduction, but she tried to do it justice, straightening up and looking around at the crowd as she stepped out. Erin was really glad that Mark and Alex were both there to handle any formalities or speeches that needed to be made. As she looked around, she noticed a familiar face, just for a second before it was lost in the crowd. Pausing in her tracks, she looked carefully out at the audience, wondering if her eyes were playing tricks on her.

[alderwitch]

Alex noticed James right away and discarded her poised and professional appearance to utterly ruin her entrance by waving at him excitedly although she kept her excited, "James!" as a mental shout to her friends alone. Alex hustled in after Mark, bouncing on her booted toes as she waited for the opportunity to go give him a proper hug.

Distance, however, caused no impediment as Alex touched James thoughts and then excitedly brought him up to speed in a mental torrent that was probably more overwhelming than helpful of more detail than he really needed since she'd last seen him.

[angrydurf]

Phalanx followed into the grand ballroom back straight and forcing himself to look straight ahead to avoid gaping at the splendor. At Psyches silent shout he broke into a grin eyes rapidly scanning the room and fixing his gaze on James as they made their way through the reception line. He did his level best to remember who all they were introduced to as they passed through and did his best to ape Edge and Psyche and not embarrass the team. Once free of the greetings he took Alexs arm and began to make his way toward where james was standing.

[Gizmo]

Midnight's shoulders squared imposingly as the group entered the ballroom, narrowed red lenses reflexively scanning the room for threats, simultaneously ranking guests for potential social challenges and assassination attempts. He reacted to Erin's abrupt stop immediately, hand reaching for the back of his matte black belt a split second before Alex's psychic shout elicited a slow blink. Even in the crowd, it wasn't hard to pick out the charming cambion amidst a pocket of beautiful women. His attitude turning cautious, the black clad youth began running through possible techniques for confirming that this was indeed James returned.

[Avenger Assembled]

"James! It's you!" Mark had never doubted it for a moment, and happily pushed his way through the crowd, making time for a friendly hello with people who recognized him, to take James by the arm and pump it like a stuck waterpump. "Look at you! Man, you're looking better and ever! Your Majesty," he said to the White Lion, "this is...well, you know Hellion! He's one of the best people I know, and one of the best friends. Oh man, it's so great to see you!" James wasn't in costume like the rest of them, but really, a tux was as much the devil-man's costume as anything else. "I knew we'd get all of Young Freedom back together!" Except for Chris, who's busy with his girlfriend. He didn't judge, though.

[Cyroa]

Gah! Alex, easy! I have NO IDEA what you're trying to tell me...except maybe give me a migraine. Slow it down a bit...like 1000 times slower, he thought with a bit of humor...and the beginnings of a massive headache. James had missed the bouncy and exuberant telepath. And while she was trying to fill him on what happened these last several months, it wasn't hard for her to pick up a little on him as well. For James, it had been considerably longer than 4 months.

He kept clapping for the others along with the rest of the crowd, his smile growing as well. It didn't look like they had changed much. Trevor still seemed suspicious and a little reserved. Alex was practically bursting at the seems. Erin was trying to hide from the spotlight. Mike still looked big enough to move the whole palace. Mark was practically soaking up the heroing.

He clasped Mark's hand with a grin. "Good to see you too Mark. Looking good. So, what invasion or world ending event did you guys do to get invited here," he asked with a chuckle. The chuckle was cut short by the large huge from the small Alex. "Good to see you too Alex." He returned the hug and looked at everyone. "Good to see you all. I missed you guys. So....Nice party you've got going here," he said with a smile.

[Electra]

"Hey James," Erin said, giving him a smile that was a little uncertain. It was good to see him, and he was looking great, but the months without contact had hurt, and here he was again like nothing had ever happened. She had no idea where he'd been or what status their friendship was at anymore. He was still her friend, though, and that made it complicated. "We didn't expect to see you here, but I'm glad you came. Are you sticking around awhile, or just in tonight for the party?"

[Gizmo]

Standing slightly behind Erin, Midnight's expression was unreadable behind his featureless black mask as Mark vigorously pumped James' hand. If the founding members of Young Freedom, a telepath among them, were convinced that the tuxedo clad young man was who he appeared to be, that would have to be enough for now, though the lean silhouette didn't move his hand far from his belt. "Hellion," he greeted in a soft rumble, noticeably subdued and defaulting to code names while in public. "Surprising timing."

[alderwitch]

Alex pulled back and beamed up at him, "His majesty was kind enough to invite us as thanks for the last time we were in Dakana. Things have been going well but busy. Mike and I got engaged over the summer and I've been busy with work. Which is doing very well, by the way. I think you'll be happy with the initial investment you made in AEON."

Her grin was quick and cheerful but she stepped back to join Mike once more, "He's here to stay, of course. I think, this is just where we happened to be. Teleportation, always handy."

[angrydurf]

Phalanx stood slightly back as the others all greeted James before stepping forward to envelop him in a slightly less than bone crushing hug, "Good to have you back." He said as he released his friend and clapped him firmly on the back, "You're sticking around now right?" he asked expectantly as he looked down with a friendly smile, "Its just not the same without you around."

[Cyroa]

He saw Erin's expression, reading it easily and not blaming her for the doubt. He had up and vanished almost overnight without a word to them. He'd have to make some apologies for that even though there was little he could have changed about it. "Wander, Midnight," he said, deferring to their code names. "Nice to see you both," he said honestly, not feeling a twinge of jealously, remorse or longing. It had taken awhile to get there though.

He looked down and smiled at Alex as she backed up to her fiance. "Congratulations you two! I was wondering if it was going to be a sooner or later thing. Sorry I missed the engagement party." He nodded in understanding. "I knew you'd do well Alex. Glad to hear it's coming along. And yes, Alex is right. As usual," he said with chuckle. "I'm back to stay. And yeah, this is where you guys were, so this is where I came. I haven't seen you guys in years," he said with a half shrug. "Time dilation in various realities and the Void can be seriously annoying sometimes," he said by way of explanation.

[Avenger Assembled]

Before the teens could linger too much on friends lost, regained, and the new relationships formed accordingly, musicians took to the stage along the far wall and began to play. Traditional Dakanan music turned out to be a blend of Arabic-sounding pop, traditional African rhythms, and some notes unique to Dakana's traditional, isolated culture: Rift or Breakdown probably could have told them more, but as it was, it was a good beat and they could all dance to it! As a fast, lively dance came up, Edge was pulled over onto the dance floor by his friend from the Agricultural Commission, the lovely young woman in the purple-print kanga looking very interested in his company, leaving the others from Young Freedom to pick amongst themselves and the many other unescorted guests very interested in getting to know the American superheroes in their company. For his part, the king of Dakana escorted his Egyptian-born wife to the dance floor as if he was king of the dance as well as king of the nation!

[Gizmo]

Midnight wasn't entirely sure how to respond to Hellion's abrupt reappearance. He certainly didn't feel threatened, per se, but for obvious reasons the two young men had not been particularly close before James' prolonged absence. Ultimately, as Mark was pulled away, he decided that the unexpected turn of events did nothing to change where the evening's priorities belonged. As steel brushes pulled out a seething beat on snare drums, he slid his hand into Erin's and nodded silently toward the dance floor, head tilted slightly to one side.

[Electra]

That seemed like a good idea to Erin, or at least a way to avoid some awkwardness. She put her hand in Trevor's with a slight smile, following him onto the floor. She'd been practicing, with a considerable amount of help from Trevor, and was much more confident than she'd been the last time she went out onto the dance floor at a party with Trevor. James had showed up by surprise at that party as well, she recalled. Strange kind of symmetry there, she guessed, but she wasn't going to hurt her brain wondering about it. She'd rather just dance.

[alderwitch]

Alex exchanged a 'blink and you'll miss it' glance with Mike before she smiled at James and offered one slender gloved hand. "Can I have this dance?" She offered with that gentle smile and sympathy hiding in her hazel eyes. "You did promise me you'd dance with me and we missed it at the school dance. So, how bout it? I promise I won't step on your feet."

She lowered her voice to a teasing whisper, "And if I do, I'm way lighter than Mike at least, right?"

[Cyroa]

James looked over at Alex with a briefly raised eyebrow and a smile on his face. He took her hand and bowed. "True enough. I wouldn't want to break a promise." He looked up at his friend and Alex's fiance. "As long as Mike doesn't mind, I'd be honored Alex."

With a nod to his large friend, he led Alex onto the dance floor. "Somehow, I have trouble seeing you stumble Alex...or crushing feet," he said wryly. He was doing his best to not dwell overly on the last time he and his friends were at a dance together. He'd made peace with his mistakes and where it had lead...but that didn't make the memories any more pleasant.

[angrydurf]

Mike gave a small nod of assent to James and smiled as they took ot he dance floor before he entirely realized the slight quandary that left him in. Even a few short months ago he likely would have retreated to the wall when left on his own. However such retreat from adversity social or otherwise was not a luxury he any longer allowed himself. Quickly scanning the room he spotted a young lady in need of a partner, likely some daughter of a minor functionary, and made his way to her side offering a hand and a small bow as he requested the honor of joining her on the dance floor. At her consent he led her to a sufficiently open spot on the floor and managed, if barely, not to embarrass himself or his partner.

[alderwitch]

"I do stumble. Not so much with the crushing feet though. Just about everyone I dance with is impervious enough that it really doesn't matter. I'd have to have some seriously dangerous shoes to even get noticed," Alex agreed with a smile and slipped easily into James arms. "And of course, Mike doesn't mind. I asked him before I asked you."

She glanced over to where her tall fiance was inviting some girl out onto the dance floor and smiled, her eyes shining slightly with pride before she looked back to James, "Cuz, he's just that good a guy. I'm a lucky girl. So, how have you been?"

Alex asked the question like she hadn't been in his head, or used his mental state to make the judgment to ask him to dance rather than go with Mike onto the floor for the first set.

[Cyroa]

"Not to mention you can fly. That cuts down on the crushing of the toes a bit." he said with a little smile. He followed her gaze Mike and then back. "Yeah, he's one in a million. You guys are a perfect set," he said honestly...and maybe a bit wistfully.

He looked at his psychotically color-challenged friend and gave a wry grin. "Loaded question huh?," he replied. She already knew what he was thinking. And he knew she knew. He didn't mind; she was Alex after all. Still, he appreciated the formality.

"I'm...good. Tired I suppose. I can't say I was thrilled to have to run off and vanish for years to keep reality nice and seperated. But it did help me get my bearings I suppose. I made plenty of mistakes and got off rather lightly because of them. I came to terms with it all. With just about everything really. Did more of that growing up stuff," he answered with a chuckle. It certainly sounded nice and easy when he said it like, but things were never that easy. "How about you? That mental barrage wasn't exactly informative in the helpful way," he said with a chuckle.

[alderwitch]

"It was helpful, it's just not immediately helpful." Alex disagreed with a smile, moving with an easy grace that said she was finally out of the all arms and legs awkward stage. Combat training was good for lots of things, coordination not the least of them, "It is, however, going to take your brain a bit to sort that all out of long term memory and access it correctly. It might be a bit like deja vu when you hear things and already know them. Or at least, they're hidden in your mind. Best to cover all the bases, yeah?"

She slipped under his arm, thinking about his question. "I'm alright. Mike's getting ready to come out - not till after graduation - but that means we have to do some research. He has to face what happened all of those years ago in private because it's got to come up in public. You know? I haven't mentioned it to him yet. I'm worried. He still struggles with it, sometimes."

[Avenger Assembled]

The teens danced and socialized for quite a while as the music played, before it was time to eat! Dakanan food was legendarily rich and vital, particularly for sub-Saharan Africa, and the plates put before the teens as they took their places along the traditional long, inwardly curving table were bursting with food! Again sitting next to his friend from the Ag Council with spaces for his friends nearby, Mark settled into a quiet, intense conversation over a magnificent hunk of what turned out to be camel steak! But there was fish from the sea and goat from the mountains, along with a dark chocolate grown along the seacoast that not incidentally also was used to flavor the legendary Dakanan coffee, supposedly the first coffee ever brewed by civilized man! Conversation was boisterous among the large crowd, giving privacy in its own muffled way to everyone.

[Gizmo]

Taking his seat, Midnight remained impassive as the awe inspiring selection of dishes were laid out before them, eliciting a few unnerved glances from the local staff and dignitaries. When trays of ornate pots along with small bowls of flavourings and delicate cups were brought out, however, he visibly straightened in his seat to take notice. Dakanan coffee was something of a grail among connoisseurs; the solitary nation's export laws made it prohibitively expensive to procure in other parts of the world and never with the expediency required for truly fresh results. As one of the trays was set nearby, conflict rose in his heart. "...can't drink coffee with my mask on," he said quietly, resting his hands under his nose.

[alderwitch]

"You want me to cover your features with an illusion?" Alex offered quietly, pausing in her telepathic explanation to Mike about what everything was. "I can hold it for the dinner without too much problem, I think."

Alex didn't have an id to hide but she understood the need for one.