Summary:Recovering after the events in the Zone a few nights ago, Gabby and Mari talk. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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It's been a couple of days since the incident in the Disaster Zone and Mari had made her apartment available to the young woman. It's safer to start with and that's of prime concern to the ex-model. There's always food in the kitchen, the balcony for ease of access for the aerial types and the apartment … well it's nice.
Mari had also arranged for some clothing for Gabrielle. Things that fit her, were nice but stil practical. The ex-model hasn't forgotten her roots.
It's late afternoon and Mari is working from home, her laptop on the table as she reviews some reports.
Whether Gabrielle did stay for the duration or drops in from time to time - Mari's rather relaxed about it.
The distraught Gabrielle was easy to coax home with Mari, though by the time they got there the blonde seemed to have at least shaken off the shock. She was still a bit subdued, but she also had the distractions of a hot shower and food. Since then, Gabby's been sleeping at Mari's, but she does head back to the Zone, usually in the evening.
Either Gabrielle's prone to eating a lot, or some of the food from Mari's kitchen is making its way elsewhere. Not in levels that wipe out the cupboards, but it's noticeable.
The clean clothes are something of a novelty for the young woman, as are much of the things in the apartment. Much of it is looked at with childlike wonder.
The balcony is apparently not only good for takeoffs and landings, but naps as well. Daytime is one of the safer times to sleep in the Zone and that habit hasn't gone away. As the day moves towards evening, Gabby sits up and blinks sleepily.
"Good afternoon, sleepy head." Mari smiles in the direction of the balcony as she Gabby stir. "You're making me jealous I can't nap in the sun." And it is sunny today. "Were you going to have to another hottub this afternoon?" She's teasing a little. Of the things that seem to catch Gabby's attention the hot tub with bubbles and the sound system have had the most work.
Of course, Mari can't blame her for *that*
As to the missing food? Mari's been stocking up. Noting what's going missing and putting more of that in the pantry. No need to say anything, she's seen the conditions in the Disaster Zone and it's a small thing she can do while working on the 'bigger' things.
Standing up and stretching, the ex-model moves to a table in the corner of the room and powers it up. A holographic image appears above it. It's an outfit - one she's designing for a gala. "How are you feeling, by the way?"
The ex-model tries to keep things low-key for Gabrielle. No stress. No expectations. She's been through a lot in a short time and Mari wants the young woman to feel safe.
Gabrielle Doe gives Mari a sleepy smile in return, though the blonde's eyes are fairly bright. It's rare to *nod* find her in a chipper mood, honestly. "You *could*," Gabrielle points out. "You just wouldn't get stuff done that you also want to get done." It's always a tradeoff. Currently, Gabby didn't have anything else she wanted to get done, so nap it was!
A purple aura surrounds Gabrielle as she doesn't so much as stand as she floats upwards, feet not quite touching the ground as she moves into the apartment and over to Mari's worktable, drawn by the hologram there. "Ooo, pretty." The question of how she is gets another smile. "I always feel better after I soak up some sun. When I was first found, I'd hide underground with the others, and I'd get really weak and run down."
That comment draws another smile from Mari. Gabrielle is always so pleasant to be around, even with the trauma of the recent past "I could, you're correct but it's not *responsible* and there are people relying on me. Maybe I'll do that on the weekend though."
She should take *some* time out for herself, right?
"Do you float everywhere most of the time?" It's an honest question as she looks at young woman "I thought we might try and get out to dinner tonight, if you're up for it." The comment about the sun draws a thoughtful look as Mari adds "It's a good thing I have the balcony then. You know, if you want to stay here, I could have it enclosed so it's nicer to be on in Winter. Not that there's *much* sun then, but still."
"Do you like it? It's a commission for a client. But I've been thinking … " The image changes to a costume. A colourful one. "If you're going to be helping the Black Panther and Vixen, would you like a costume for yourself?"
"If you've made promises, you should keep them." Gabrielle agrees, nodding with the grave seriousness of a child. Despite that particular childlike quality, emotionally she seems much older. Well, still probably a late-teen prone to quick swings and larger-than-life reactions, but certainly not too far off from her appearance.
The question about her floating instead of walking gets a slight flush, the light going out as she drops the inch or so to the floor. "I feel a lot heavier like this, and then when I want to move up or down I have to shift my halo on and there's this weird moment between the two. But it's bright, I know. Sorry."
The question about the balcony gets a thoughtful look, and she finally shakes her head. "I don't feel the cold much if I keep my halo up. And it's like I can't feel the sunlight as well through the glass." Low-E coatings cutting down the solar radiation she's unknowingly soaking up. Scrunching her nose in playful annoyance, Gabrielle nods. "Winter sucks for that. But the snow is fun!"
The outfit gets an enthusiastic nod of approval from the model of homeless chic, and then she ohhs softly at the costume before blinking to Mari. "For me?"
"Very true." Mari winks, drawing the young woman closer to give her a one armed hug about the shoulders. "You have *nothing* to be sorry for, I just wondered, tis all. If you're comfortable and it doesn't drain you too much , then I see no reason why shouldn't. I'm curious about your abilities, not critical."
"Well if glass makes it difficult, then I shan't do that." That gets a chuckle though the mention of snow has Mari shivering. "You can keep the snow. Cold and wet that it is." There's a wrinkle of her nose to go with that. "But if you like it, I might be tempted to endure it."
"A costume for you, if you'd like it. This is the start of an idea but I thought you might have fun designing it with me? You're going to be wearing it after all and know what you need. Let me show you how this works…"
It takes a few moments for Mari to give the basics to Gabrielle and let the woman have the controls.
"Snow can be fun. At first. If it actually *snows*." There's a bit of that childlike whine as Gabrielle says that. New York City doesn't get the best snow, and it's usually ickydirty in no time. The blonde woman just beams a bit at Mari's one-armed hug, leaning into Mari just a bit.
When Mari says she's curious about her abilities, Gabrielle tilts her head curiously. "What do want to know?" Not that Gabrielle knows a lot of details. She mostly just knows what she can do. Sort of.
As to the costume, Gabby bobs her head enthusiastically, watching Mari explain the controls with rapt attention and then taking her turn with tentative pokes and prodding.
It might end up being a hot, colorful mess. Mari's fashion sense, Gabby does not have.
"This is true." Mari smiles, letting the blonde lean against her. "Maybe we could travel and see real snow, clean snow. Though I really do prefer the warmer climates. Unlike you, I don't have a way to naturally protect from the cold." She smiles a little, trying not to grimace as Gabrielle decides to use *all the crayons* in designing her costume.
"I'm not sure really. It's more general but you said you can't use two aura's together. Is that right?" They'll start there.
"Well that's … colourful. May I make some suggestions?" It's gentle, the ex-model not wanting to quash the younger womans enthuasiasm. "What about a darker colour that bleeds into others, using the brighter colours as highlights?" Slowly the design morphs a little. The top becomes black, with bands of blue, yellow and red wrapping around the hips, thighs and calves. "What do you think of something like that?"
Most of Gabrielle's attention is on the costume. Also maybe playing with the buttons. Shoulderpads that big should only be in World of Warcraft games. OK, and now what's with all the *pouches*? No her would wear that many would they? What would she even carry? But she nods at the question, showing she can multitask. "I can swap from one aura to another, which does different things. But I can't like, do all the things at once."
The blonde woman oooos softly as Mari reigns in her 'everything and the kitchen sink' approach. And then she finds a pattern stamp and adds a spot. And then another. And then ALL THE SPOTS!
"With your build, shoulderpads would you look more a dorito …" Mari chuckles, letting the woman play and slowly correcting. "Pouches are handy, I'll give you that. I put pockets in all my dresses but like that they'll catch and increase your drag. Let's leave them off for a moment." Yep, they're gone.
"That's what I thought. You seem to be able to switch effortlessly between your aura's. Does one drain you more than another? My abilities don't tend to though they don't really give me extra stamina, so I still tire like a peak athlete might."
OMG. The spots. Mari is thankful that Gabrielle hasn't discovered the zebra or leopard print stamps. "People might think you've caught some disease." The ex-model chuckles, gently removing them all and most of the colours. "What about something like this? It might be too dark for your sunny disposition though." The coloured bands are removed, replaced with a 'belt' of multicolours.
"Doh-ree-to?" Snackfoods have not been especially available in the Zone for some time. By now, any left over are stale and their bright packaging mostly worn away. Gabrielle doesn't seem to take objection to Mari's changes. Maybe she's more playing around with things than really set on anything.
"The auras don't drain me, but if I use them for stuff, they can. Like, if I'm carrying around something heavy for a long time yes. But just flying around, no. Well, except when they first found me and I was hiding underground. Then even bringing up my auras started to be hard."
As Mari changes the costume again she wins another grin from Gabrielle. "Sparkly! It's not like I'm very sneaky."
"Dorito…" Mari gives the woman a sideways a look and pulls up image on her tablet. "Delicious but not really something we want to look like. See, broader at the top than at the bottom." Of course, there's some memes there comparing the dorito to a popular war-time super-soldier. Though Gabrielle might not get those jokes.
"You just need to recharge and you can do that in sunlight, right?" Has Gabrielle realised that? Mari seems to have quite easily. "From what I've seen, you can lift things, fly … and …" she pauses for a moment as she considers the next question "… the other night, when we fighting in the Zone. You seemed to be slowed a lot. What was that?"
There's a chuckle at the grin and the comment on the design. "This ones understated. If you'd like more colour, how about something like this…" The belt is removed and a 'sun' in bright white is placed over the heart, lines of red, yellow and blue flowing from it.
Mari's critical of the design but she'll wait for Gabrielles input. It's still a little staid, bland even for how Gabrielle is.
Gabrielle Doe gives Mari an almost chastising look. "You could have said 'triangle'." She's teasing the older woman.
The blonde looks thoughtful at Mari's suggestion and then nods. "Yeah, I guess so. I always feel better when I can soak up some rays. And I guess being underground I wasn't getting any." No, Gabrielle didn't put that together. She doesn't seem to think things through a lot, though she seems to understand concepts well enough.
"Someone told me it was a uh, 'stasis' field? It like, stops stuff. But then.. Jake used it on me, and it kept me from freezing all the way. Like when I have my orange aura up, I can shoot blasts. But it also protects me from things hitting me. And red is heat. Uhm, the purple is for like, picking things up and yellow is, well, light." Lots of light, if she wants it to be.
The latest offering gets a squinched face as she peers at it. "I liked the other ones better."
"I could have but Dorito is descriptive and it's hilarious." Mari smirks ruffling the blondes hair. It's a strange thing, Gabrielle appears to be in her mid twenties and yet there's a lack of maturity. Is that the the amnesia or something else? They really need to get in touch with Detective Grayson and see how he's gone with finding out about the woman.
"Stasis. Interesting. And I saw Jake use it on you." The mention of Jake draws a sidelong look "Jake … was a friend in the Zone, wasn't he. Did you know he had powers like you?" Mari saw that stream of 'light' leaving the body and wonders at that.
"Have you done much with your aura's or does it just come naturally? I had to learn how to call the abilities of the spirits I could summon, it's a lot of work sometimes and not everything goes to plan."
"You don't? That's ok, but how about this… " The bland design gets some elements added to it. The blue line is extended down the side over the left leg. Bands of yellow and red around each calf. From the stomach down the right thigh, four 'spots' of bright white. The change is effective and much, much brighter.
"Seems like it would only be descriptive if there was going to be eating involved." Gabrielle says dubiously.
It's hard to put a finger on what's right and wrong with the girl. She's naive but fairly bright, has the emotional fortitude of a teenager but always tends to pull back to that sunny disposition.
Remembering what happened with Jake though, dims that sun. "He was one of the good ones." She agrees. "And no, he never used them before or mentioned them, even when he saw me using them." Because subtle, Gabrielle is not. So she leans towards 'careful'.
As to her own powers? "Naturally I guess. I wanted to move something and one aura would come up. I wanted to knock something down, the other did. Some part of me must remember? Because when I want to do it I just do."
"Better. I like the colors." Gabrielle smiles at Mari. Shocker, that, surely.
Mari would call it naive, indeed. Someone who didn't have a great amount of experience in the world and yet, Gabrielle is clearly educated, intelligent - so she's had some socialisation but … it's like she grew up in a laboratory or something. Maybe Graysons found something they can work with.
She wonders though. "Do you remember where you were found? And yes, I call it muscle memory - you use an ability or skill so often it's natural and you don't ever remember not doing it. Like breathing, really - you don't know *how* you do it, but you do."
The news about Jake gets a slight frown but Mari really is trying to keep this upbeat, she knows it causes the young woman some pain. "Yet he seemed to know what and who you were and …" she shakes her head, letting that slide for the moment.
"I think so too." The ex-model says, eyeing the design critically. "How about I leave that here for a little bit and see if you still like it, in a couple of hours. Mmmm, we're going to need a 'name' for you too. Like I'm, Vixen." Mari's nose wrinkles a bit. "Speaking of eating. I'm hungry, shall we go and get an early dinner? I'll know you want to head back to the Zone tonight." When Gabrielle looks, there's a box of supplies in the pantry. Mari's been busy.
Gabrielle Doe tilts her head to the side again, looking thoughtful. "I could probably find it again. It was towards the south side, I think. When I woke up I was really disoriented and wandered around a while. Katie might remember where she found me." One thing Gabby does have, is contacts in the Zone. Folks that are willing to talk to her and do her favors. Maybe because she's helped them in the past or just that she won them over with her sunny disposition.
That Jake knew her gets a shake of her head. "Jake knew me but.. that didn't sound like him. Not even just like he'd gone off the deep end." Which some people do, stuck in the Zone too long.
Even the mention of food just coaxes a bit of a smile from Gabby, though she bobs her head in a nod. The whole affair really disturbed her, though despite that she's likely to shake off the worst of it in an hour or so. It still bothers her, and she remembers, she just doesn't seem to dwell on it.
"Let's get dinner then and if you're feeling like it later, we'll go into Zone and find Katie. See if we can find where you woke up. Maybe that will tell us a little about you and by extension, what happened to Jake. I know what you mean he didn't sound like he was crazy."
And that was concerning. The things he was saying.
With another one armed hug and a slight nudge "Did you need to get anything? I'll get my bag and we'll go. I'm thinking we get burgers." Not, you know, those crappy fast food chain burgers. Mari knows this nice burger joint not far from here. "Unless you want something more up class." the ex-model doesn't think so, but the options there.
They can discuss as they head out though.