Summary:Cold hatred meets hot dogs and hotter heroes. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
Related LogsTheme SongNone |
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It's a beautiful day in NYC. The sun is shining, the taxi cabs are blaring their horns, and the smell of the corner hot dog carts permeates the air.
Taking a much needed break from the Institute in Westchester, Kurt is enjoying a relaxing day in the city. Dressed in what can only be described as 'bland' clothing, the man doesn't stand out in the crowd at all. Everything about him is just average. Average height, average build, brown hair…etc. It is almost as if he is purposefully just dull.
Currently paused at one of the hot dog carts, Kurt orders "Ja, please. Two with everything, extra sauerkraut if you don't mind."
Spider-Man is doing whatver a Spider can. He just left the bodega, with the armed robber cocooned and hanging from the streetlight outside. Upside-down, because he tried to shoot the cashier and he figured the guy needed a little more blood in his head.
Unfortunately, that's one cartridge down, and now he's hungry. He pauses, then smiles. Big Jake runs his hot dog stand two blocks away, and he serves the best street meat in Manhattan. His wife makes the chili every night before.
And Spidey saved him from some thugs working for a food truck, so the guy offers him free meals. So, bonus.
He fires a webline and is off towards Big Jake's hot dog cart.
It's been a busy morning for the owner of Carpenter Studios, as several orders were prepped for mailing. But now that's done, and Angela is busy walking down the sidewalk, on her way to one of the best hot dog carts in town.
(One advantage of having an angelic metabolism, these things never go to your hips.)
She eventually gets to the stand, and gives Kurt a friendly smile, queueing up patiently enough as she looks particularly satisfied on this fine autumn day.
Hot dogs in hand, Kurt gives Jake a big smile. "Danke. It's been a while since I have had one of these." Lifting the hot dog to his mouth, Kurt takes a bite and slowly chews while he makes a pleased noise in the back of his throat.
Noticing Angela, Kurt steps out of the line and nods his head to her, "Entschuldige, frauline. I didn't mean to be in the way."
Backing out of the way, Kurt bumps the cart with his hip slightly, and for a brief instance the form of the average-looking man vanishes; replaced by the form of a blue-furred creature of demonic appearance. Glowing yellow eyes stare back at Angela, a sharp-toothed smile grinning back at her for a second before the image flickers back.
The line is kinda long. Spidey looks down from the ledge and ponders. He feels a little self-conscious about showing up in costume….
And then the first unpleasant tingle of his Spider-Sense.
Rick and his boys were in a foul mood already. The foreman of the construction crew is an arrogant ass, the work is running longer than expected, and the guy who got them the jobs said they could pick up some easy money. But, right now, he and his ten friends were expected to do actual WORK. Being part of the Silvermane family should have meant they could pick up an easy paycheck as they robbed the site blind.
But it turned out to be legit, which was working on all of them.
Then Rick saw the flicker. One of the guys ahead of him suddenly became a monster. Except he'd heard about THIS particular monster from the Internet.
And suddenly, his mood was lifted by the prospect of a good mutie-stomp.
He motioned to the others behind him, pointed out Kurt, and they all nodded.
Spider-Man watched the heavy-looking hardcases step out of line and realized he was going to need his costume after all…
Kurt gets a warm smile from Angela, and an answer that sounds (to him, at least) in perfectly fluent German, "Not a problem, I'm not in any rush." But when the image flickers after Kurt bumps the cart, she blinks in surprise once, but doesn't really say anything to draw attention to it. Yet, anyway.
What she does do, however, is step up to the cart, looking to keep the cart owner from noticing as she says, "I'll take a chili dog, if you please. Light on the onions though." She flickers her eyes back towards Kurt, "You can't be too new here if you've already figured out that Jake's is the best hot dog cart in the city." She doesn't seem to pay much mind to Rick and the others just yet.
Though, oddly enough, even though Kurt hears her talking in perfectly accented German, Jake seems to have no problem understanding her either…
Maybe Kurt thinks that Jake is fluent in German, because Kurt doesn't notice anything odd about Angela speaking German and Jake understanding, or it could just be he isn't paying close enough attention. Just like he isn't paying attention to Rick and his boys as they start to close the distance on the demonic mutant.
Speaking in German, Kurt replies to Angela with a smile. «"Oh, You speak German! How lovely. No, I have been in New York for a few years. Technically I live up in Westchester, but I visit the city often enough. I was told that these were the best, so this is where I come.»
The inducer flickers again, log enough this time for a glimpse of the prehensile tail waving lazily over Kurt's shoulder as it moves up to scratch a spot on his neck before sliding back into 'normal' again.
Jake's eyes suddenly widen as he pulls back slightly as Rick steps forward. "Hey, boys. Guess what's on the menu today…DEAD MEAT."
The others fan out as the actual customers scatter. They know what's coming and don't want to get involved.
Rick looks at Angela and points to her left. "Leave. We're just going to have a little fun, and you don't want to see something that we'll have to visit you LATER for, to make sure you've forgotten."
Angela blinks, then chuckles softly, looking at Rick and the others with him, "Oh, I'm afraid you're the one that doesn't understand. So I'll tell you this once, and once only. Turn around, and walk away, and this trespass shall be forgiven." Her eyes narrow, and for the briefest of seconds there appears to be a flare of light from within those orbs.
"He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding, but he that is hasty of spirit shows folly. So this is your chance to go." She shrugs a bit, still sounding like German to Kurt, while Jake and the others would hear her speaking in perfect New York, which might be considered English.
"A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones." retorts Kurt (in English) as if by rote as he turns to look at Rick and the boys.
"Gentlemen?" he asks cocking a head to one side as he eyes the gang, "Guten tag, can I help you with something?" Kurt isn't stupid, he sees the group and knows there is hostility but if he can deescalate the situation maybe bloodshed doesn't need to happen. Still, the image induced man's posture becomes more defensive, subtle shifts in body language showing he is prepared for an attack. It's almost like he has been through this before.
A blip on the Spider-Net shows that Spider-Man was headed for Jake's. It was a good enough reason as any to skip out of class, make for the NYU science building's roof, and a quick transformation into Spider-Girl.
The masked woman is swinging hard down the streets, her stomach already grumbling in anticipation of cheesy jalapeno chili kosher beef goodness. However, as the black-clad heroine comes swinging around the corner, her spider-drone Arana flying along in pursuit, something in her mask's HUD raises her hackles. "Hey, Spidey, what the hell?" she asks over the comm. She's still at least four blocks away, but Arana has zoomed in on the gathered dudes and it doesn't look like they're being friendly.
Rick snickered. "Can you HELP us with something? Fucking mutie kraut-"
"Boys? Oh, boyyyys?"
He was going to go the quiet route, but these guys were going to redline this altercation double-quick, and it was time to step in. A few looking behind and up towards the source of the voice, and then a couple go white with fear and recognition.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man was perched on the streetlight, looking down at them.
"Boss, it's SPIDER-MAN!"
Now, more eyes are turning to face his, but six of them are still looking at Kurt like he's the lunch they want.
Spidey sends over the Spider-Comm, "Eleven of Silvermane's meatheads are gearing up for a curb stomp. I'm trying to curb it." A waypoint appears in the HUD of Anya's eye-insert, so that still works.
Angela smiles slightly, waving to Spider-Man as hey, she knows him! Well, okay, they met once and it's a big city, but she says up to Spidey, "Hello there! We seem to be the target of some racist idiots, if you wouldn't mind lending a hand?"
She then glances over her shoulder at Kurt and tosses him a wink, "Don't worry, I've got you covered." Which is sounding pretty confident, that this rather unassuming woman is totally fine with facing off with a would-be lynch mob. Or even that she's been speaking (to Kurt) German this entire time but everyone else seems to understand her anyway, though she does add, looking back at Rick, "Let me put it to you in words you understand. If you come any closer, I'll teach you to Fear God and give Glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come." With that, she gets a rather wicked little grin.
it just so happened that there was another swinging her way toward Jake's. And she has a lovely cut of meat in mind, but it has nothing to do with the hot dog cart. She was /definitely/ not stalking Spider-Man when he saved the Bodega and its owner from a guy who ended up cocooned and hanging upside down. And she was /certainly/ not stalking him as she followed him from a block behind, as he swung his way toward Jake's cart. So she /absolutely/ wasn't stalking OR planning to protect him when he zeroed in on the hooligans.
From her vantage point above, she looked to see who exactly WAS their intended target. Of course, she thought. A mutant can be easy pickings in New York. It began to boil her blood, even as the Lil Blue Fart Demon changed instantly back into Joe the Bland Accountant.
Cat drops down from a thin, wiry cable, her high heeled boots clicking definitively on the sidewalk as she touches down near (and behind) Kurt. A mutant, herself, she is not about to let this whole mess fly.
"Hello, Boys…"
Kurt glances up at Spider-Man and over towards Angela before turning his gaze to the group in front of him. There will be time for pleasantries later, but for now he focuses on the threat.
"Mein Gott im himmel will this type of bigotry ever end?" exclaims Kurt exasperatedly as he reaches down to turn off the malfunctioning image inducer, revealing his full form. He gestures a three-fingered hand at the group in front of him and exclaims, "But glory, honour, and peace, to every man. I don't mean you any ill will, and I assure you that if you progress down this path it will not end how you expect. Go now, in peace, before this becomes something you can't walk away from."
Its true, some of the tech built into Anya's mask was damaged during the operation she and Spider-Man had been on with SHIELD, but she's had ample time to fix it, and to weave herself a fresh costume.
"If you can't curb it," Spider-Girl replies, "I'm ready to stomp it." She swings low and hard, extending her arcs both low and high. You know, for speed.
She has to admit… Spidey's full of eye-rollers, but that was a good one.
Rick suddenly finds himself and his crew beset upon by not one but TWO Spider-types, a mutie with his dander up, and one odd woman who looks ready to get stuck in there. Not to mention the female predator who appeared out of nowhere.
Rick looks around, and knows he's lost the guys. They are on this side of panic, and he knows better than to start a fight he can't win. Silvermane had RAGED over the blown deal Spider-Man and that bitch Blackbird had ruined.
Time to cut losses and run.
"Okay…" he said, holding up his hands. "All right…we're leaving. C'mon boys, this mutie ain't worth the headache."
"Beat feet, guys," Spidey said soberly. When he wasn't joking, it meant he was ready to get serious, and the entire crew picked up that vibe quickly.
With one last look at Kurt, Rick and his boys retreated from the field of honor.
Spider-Man sighed. "Whew…" He looked down, then decided to hop down to the street to avoid looking down at anyone. "Hello, Angela. I didn't know you were a force to be reckoned with."
Angela smiles a bit, "Well, I think it was more your appearance than anything I did. Though I did have a few surprises if he pushed the issue." With that, she turns and gives Kurt an appraising look, then says, "And, honestly, you look far better like this, though I can see the reasons why you couldn't go out like that." Her eyes reflect a fair amount of empathy for Kurt, as she offers him her hand, "Angela Carpenter. I run an art studio over in SoHo."
With the mutant and heroes talking, and the rest of the line having vacated, the Black Cat steps up to the cart in her revealing, skin tight catsuit and domino mask, pulling a couple of folded bills from - where else? A pouch on her belt. (She does have a /little/ decorum, after all.)
" One of the jumbo dogs, please." She gives Jake a come-hither smile and hands him a ten dollar bill as she takes her hot dog from him. Sure, there had been trouble afoot. But it was defused now…and she had an excuse to buy a food item she could eat suggestively. Everybody wins. (I did just say she had a LITTLE decorum.)
Using his tail to hold one of his pair of hot dogs, Kurt offers his now free hand over to Angela. "Kurt Wagner," he says with a smile, "Ja, it's not easy being blue at times, nor looking like something from pop culture's version of and agent from Hell, but we do what we can with what God has given us."
He looks over to Spider-Man and tips his head gently in greeting, "Thank you, Spider-Man. Please, allow me to treat you all to a hot dog or two, it is the least I can do for the assistance rendered." Turning to see Cat and her devouring of a dog. He clears his throat, "Herr, erbarme dich unser..
Half a face that was about to turn vicious becomes a rueful smirk. "Nice job, compadre," she murmurs to herself, though Spider-Man will be able to hear it over their little mask communicators. She swings low over the top of their heads, imagining herself as Maverick buzzing the tower without permission.
Negative, Ghost Spider, the pattern is full.
Huh. Ghost Spider. Maybe she needs to go for a rebrand. Either way, the young woman yanks on her tethered webline to slow her speed before slamming into the wall of a building, causing her to land on it upside down, on all fours, light enough to go unnoticed by the accountant on the phone with his back to the window beyond.
"Arana, marcar objetivos y perseguir. Silencio." The command causes the spider-drone named Arana to fly high into the sky, though her camera and IR sensors remain locked upon the retreating thugs. Time to find out where these bastards hide out.
Clambering down the wall, Spider-Girl pushes off and performs a double-half flip, sticking the landing like an Olympian not far from those gathered near Jake's. "Who's hungry? I'm hungry." Behind the mask, her eyes are moving from one to the other, while silently and without looking at him offers a fist to Spider-Man for the bumping.
Spider-Man reached for his wallet…then realizes i is actually empty. "Uhm, sure." He smiles to Big Jake reassuringly, then fistbumps Spider-Girl with a wry smile.
…which freezes a little as he spots *her* and wonders how she got here so quickly.
"Uhm…Mr. Wagner, Spider-Girl, Miss Carpenter…" he indicates the woman with the disturbingly-shapely body. "…this is the Black Cat."
Angela gives Kurt another smile, releasing his hand after a firm squeeze, then looks over at the Black Cat. She blinks once, then says, "Nice to meet you." And she actually sounds like she means it, as she takes her chili dog from Jake, giving him a wry expression. Then she nods over as Spider-Man makes the introductions, "It's… nice to meet all of you. Sorry, I normally don't see many people like all of you, I tend to be shut up in my studio a fair amount of the time." With that, she nods towards Spidey, "I mean, you've seen it."
The Black Cat laps a bit of mustard from the end of her hot dog, then licks off the dab on her bottom lip. "Enchante," she replies to Spidey, addressing the others. But her gaze is quickly drawn back to the webslinger. "Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude on your turf, so to speak. I have a bit of a soft spot for X-actives, one might say. I must admit it resolved more peacefully than I had expected." Or intended.
Taking a couple of steps over back to Jake, Kurt produces a wallet from his pants pocket before looking around at the assembled group of heroes (and Cat). Well, one good thing about the almost confrontation is that the line is gone.
"Jake, is it? Please, provide mien friends here with whatever they wish, on me."
He turns back to the group in question and looks at each in turn, "Black Cat, it is uhhh, a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Yes, he stares jsut a bit. Clearing his throat and turns to the others, "…same to you Spider-Girl, Spider-Man. I'm Kurt, or Nightcrawler if we are going to use the monikers. It's not like I can hide who I am like this so either or is fine. I do appreciate the assist, I'm just glad no-one was hurt. Had they not dispersed or you had not come along I would have just fled to avoid the bloodshed, but maybe next time they will think about their actions."
For a long moment, Spider-Girl seems to be eyeballing Black Cat. She isn't exactly ignoring the greetings from everyone else; she shoots Angela a brief upnod, and gives a friendly smile to Kurt, but her eyes remain locked upon Black Cat.
"Are you sure?" she asks Spider-Man, and levels a gloved finger at Felicia. "Are you sure you aren't Madame Vicious from House of Pain?" A pause, and she glances toward Angela and Kurt. "Not… that… I've ever been to a BDSM party. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but, I don't go to those. Not my thing." Swiveling back to Felicia she says, "Well, you're a dead ringer. Assuming you're good with a whip, you could probably make some extra dinero as a domme. Ain't nothing wrong with that when it's in a safe and consenting environment." Her mask shifts a bit, as if she's winking toward the busty Bond Villaness.
Back to Kurt, she smiles brightly. "Nightcrawler is a bad-ass name." She reaches over to offer the fellow her hand in greeting. "Buenos dias! There's another Spider-Girl, so, I've been thinking about a name change. I don't think I'll ever come up with anything as dope as yours though." She blushes a little when Jake asks her what she wants. "Uh… just, one cheesy coney dog with extra jalapenos."
Spider-Man smiles reassuringly to the Cat. "Trust me, I always welcome the help, and since I tend to patrol…well, all five boroughs…" He looks back to Kurt, and the smile behind his mask is friendly. "Anyway, nothing to tell, so no trouble." Spider-Man suddenly ohs, and looks back to the Cat. "Hey! That guy you told me about…yeah, they nabbed him." He looked to the others. "Cat here had taken steps to make sure an international criminal didn't flee the country. Thanks to her, the guy is going to federal prison for a good long time, and then a German prison after his stint is done here. He's going to be enjoying prison food for the rest of his life."
They don't really need to know Cat did it by stealing a necklace worth a cool ten million. It might reflect poorly on her, and Spidey can be judicious with the truth.
Angela nods towards Black Cat at Spidey's words, "Well, I don't know if you would ever need a sword forged, but that's some of the work I do at my studio." She smiles a bit, addressing the group as a whole, "I work mostly as a blacksmith, which… well, you'd be surprised at the demand for authentic-looking weaponry and armor for cosplay and the like. And my work is the finest quality." She takes a certain amount of pride in that, and hey, you never know, maybe someone does need a sword?
No, they didn't need to know about the necklace. Luckily, it was only included in the exposition. Just like they didn't need to know how Spidey looked at her that night on the roof, or how blushed he was when she—Wait, back to the scene….
"Well, I'm glad he'll be put away. It's not my job to judge people, but when someone like HIM pulls that kinda shit, SOMEBODY needs to judge him."
A brow is arched, and interest clearly piqued at Angela's swordcraft…
Sword? Did someone say sword? Kurt looks over an Angela with a gleam in his already glowing yellow eyes. "Why, as a matter of fact I do happen to be a bit of a fencer. I am always on the lookout for a quality blade. I tend more towards rapiers, but I am not going to be picky. Maybe sometime I can take a look? Though I don't know if I can afford one anytime soon. I'll have to check my expense account, see if I can't justify it somehow."
Kurt's tail moves up and over his shoulder, letting him take a bite from the hot dog that it holds. Chewing slowly he looks between Cat and Spider-Girl before he casts a glance over towards Spider-Man with a chuckle. "Yes. I'm sure you know nothing about bondage, fraulein with the webs. Nothing at all." Smirking he opens his mouth to say something else but is interrupted by the ringing of a phone in his pocket.
"Ah…pardon me. I'll be right back." the blue demon utters just before he disappears in a puff of smoke and brimstone, an audible *BAMF* noise accompanying the teleportation. Those with keen eyes may notice the same purplish smoke appear on the roof above.
Of course, Spider-Girl has no need for swords or knives. Perhaps a very sharp blade with which to cut her webs with in a pinch. Anya, however, could use a specially cast corset. She files it away for future reference.
A smirk forms on her face as Arana starts feeding locations back to her. Some of Silvermane's thugs had broken off, but a group of them seem to have congregated in a building. Her left hand makes a few gestures at her side, as if tapping into an invisible keyboard.
"Check it out, Spider-Man," she says, and makes a gesture as if passing something to him. The data fed by Arana into her mask HUD is passed right along to his HUD, naturally.
Looking back to Kurt, Spider-Girl forms a truly entertained grin. "It's my specialty. Wrapping up bad guys, but usually they aren't consenting." She shrugs helplessly, but when he disappears, she seems truly shocked. "Ah!" she gasps, and then the smell hits her. "Oh." She takes a step back, nose crinkling. "Ew. Ugh. That sucks."
Empathy for her nose, and empathy for the missing Kurt.
Spider-Man checks out the data and nods to Spider-Girl. "Looks like a union job. Might be a good idea to keep an eye on them, see if they're running any contraband through that. Right now, though, just watch them."
He looked to Angela, then held up one arm for Angela to see the webshooter. "I don't know about swords. I don't use weapons. But how are you at small mechanics? Working with alloys? I could use replacement parts for these, and I would like to provide some support."
Angela looks over at Kurt, "Well, I have actually made rapiers befo…" and that's when he poofs out, causing Angela to sneeze at the smell of brimstone, "Ugh. Handsome elf, but not the best smell." She looks mildly amused, then glances at Spidey.
"Here, let me see that closer." She gently takes his wrist, squinting down at the webshooter, "Quality craftsmanship, certainly. Very innovative. The… fluid, for the webs? That I don't think I could replicate, of course, but crafting a copy of the shooter itself? That wouldn't be too difficult, I think, now that I've seen it."
Watching toward the roof, Cat furrows her brow. "Love the smell of brimstone in the morning…" But her eyes are watering.
"I'll likely be getting in touch with you myself, when I finally settle on a new weapon," she states, taking out a pale pink kerchief and dabbing at her poor, watering eyes.
"Like my uncle after a really bad bender," Spider-Girl agreed with Angela. She shakes her head before giggling quietly to herself. "He is cute, though," she agrees.
To Spider-Man, she nods her head and taps with her left hand again, sending another command to Arana without the verbals.
"If," she murmurs sarcastically. Seems she doesn't expect those guys' douchebaggery to start or end at bigotry.
Spidey takes his meal, one chili dog and a tall soda, with his other hand. "The fluid I can handle. Reverse-engineered it from natural spider-silk. But I would like to see what you can do. I can send someone with the designs, and see what you can put together." He chuckled. "My equipment is slightly…antiquated."
Angela reaches into her small purse, pulling out a business card, "Here, Miss… ah, Cat, you can contact me here." It has Carpenter Studios, complete with address, phone, and email. She nods over at Spidey, "Sounds good, then, I'll look forward to the visit. Here." Spidey gets a card as well, and she does also extend one to Spider-Girl.
"Yes, he was rather cute, I have to say. Pity he has to cloak his appearance for the small-minded ones. Typical, really." She sighs lightly at that.
Spider-Girl takes the card happily, shoving it into a pouch at her waist that was all but invisible before. "I've always tried to tell people not to hide who they are," she admits with a touch of regret. "But I wear a mask. Y'know? Not long ago I was thinking about it. Same reason I wear a mask, probably the same reason he hides. Or, at least, similar reasons."
Spidey sighs. "Sometimes you have to wear a mask. When the wrong people know who you are, they go afer those you care about. I don't like having to deceive people I care about…but I don't have a choice in the matter." He looks up to Kurt. "People hate what they don't understand, and they fear what they hate. He seems like a decent guy, though." He looks to the Cat. "You have to see people based on what they do and why they do it."
Angela nods, "Well, concealing identity I understand. That makes sense… but just hiding who you are because you look different…" She makes a snort, "Humanity hasn't advanced nearly as much as you'd think." Apparently she's feeling a bit cynical today, as she releases a quiet sigh of frustration.
Felicia sees what Spidey does, and why he does it. Moreover, she sees how his tush looks when he's doing it. She arches her brows when he looks at her, just as she rests her hot dog on her tongue to take a bite. And then she does take a bite.
"I find life behind the mask liberating. I am who I decide I am, and only that." But still she can't help watching Spidey curiously. Wondering what kind of man has a but—personality like that.
"You're right," Spider-Girl tells Angela. She feels her cynicism and shares it to a deep level. "In fact, we've barely advanced at all. Racism, sexism, they're alive as ever, and people hate guys like him just because he's blue. There's no ethical work or consumption under capitalism… the list goes on." Her shoulders straighten. "Which is why people like us have to keep fighting, standing up for folks, demanding that shit changes." The girl's got a mouth on her, but if there's one thing she's not, it's a quitter. Spider-Man will know; she learned that lesson.
A side eye is given to Black Cat, but the mask is… well, it's beneficial sometimes. She bites her tongue, but when Jake hands her hot dog over, she demonstratively shoves half the thing into her mouth and chews on it vigorously.
Spider-Man agrees hat work is still to be done. Rick and his thugs are proof of that. But it it not as accepted as it once was. He takes a bite of his chili dog, not saying anything for the moment. Spider-Girl plainly does not need his assistance on this.
He looks back to Angela, but opts to focus on eating. He IS really hungry…
Angela takes the opportunity to work on her own chili dog, taking advantage of the lull of conversation. Though she does look wryly at Spider-Girl, answering her in-between bites, "Exactly. And you should keep it up, as the light does break through sometimes. It just takes patience, and time." Which she sounds like she's had a lot of, though she doesn't look that old.
The Black Cat takes no notice of the side-eye she can't see. She takes no offense at the way Spider-Girl savages that weiner. She quite simply takes another bite of her hot dog. She has little to say that hasn't already been said, and she has half a hot dog left to eat suggestively.
Patience and time; it's a thing they talk about at DSA meetings, but it's a concept Anya hasn't quite bought into. Patience and time aren't good enough for the people who are dying now. It's on the tip of her tongue, but she doesn't say it. Something about the way Angela said it has taken her off guard.
Her grandmother has said the same thing before.
Her chewing slows, and while she isn't treating the hot dog quite like Felicia, it is just kind of sticking there now, in her gloved hand, with a glob of cheese about to fall off its tip.