Summary:Emma and her daughters are having a quite dinner at Tavern on the Green when a sniper tries to take Emma out, thankfully Quicksilver caught wind of the shot and was able to intervene. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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The Tavern on the Green is actually fairly historic, and Emma does indeed very much enjoy their food, and open air. Yes, security nightmare, but..such is life. She refuses, FLAT refuses to let fear keep her from living life as she sees fit. She'll make compromises, there's a security team present, but, she'll not give up what she enjoys.
The weather is a mostly sunny seventy-three degrees out, and the patio is fairly full, though that security detail is staying mostly unobtrusive, four people…three of them women, and not /overt/ at all unless one really knows what to look for.
Emma sits, dressed in a white power suit that could feed a family of four for years, legs folded one over the other as she simply savors a hot cuppa with her daughters.
Catseye enters and all but collapses in the chair next to Emma, dropping her bag on the ground with the thud of textbooks. She's wearing a sundress that fades from violet to lavender to white then back again, with purple sandals that have been dyed to match. "Caught up on classwork, so have the weekend free… Exams are second week of August, have papers due before then of course, but already working on second drafts." She looks at Emma, "Would like Mother to read them over, please? Especially the Ethics and AI paper."
Pris has nothing at all against eating out, or eating outside, or doing so in public. She isn't even upset Emma being out here; she trusts to their safety efforts and refuses to live in fear anymore than anyone else. Besides, they don't have any active outstanding threats, according to the head of security. And Pris can see her sister right across the table. "I'm seriously considering this 'duck chesapeake'." she murmurs, after hearing out Catseye.
"Way to go." Pris cheers softly, showing her support and pride. Sharon is a far, far better student than Pris will ever be.
The evening seems near perfect excepting for one thing. A pale blur slides through the kitchen, and some glove shaped pot holders are borrowed from where they hang. Pietro doesn't mean to be rude, but he flits from kitchen to outside dining area, and literally leaps up to the table the three Frost ladies are sitting at. "Excuseme!" Is offered on the fast side as the speedster leaps up again to starts slowing that bullet down. Making sure that it doesn't reach Emma. Pushing it this way and that, juggling it between his hands at speeds that aren't easily seen… and then he drops it to the table so that it can be found, the gloves following it.
He disappears as the sound of the shot reaches the area, for Pietro is trying to find the shooter! Zoom!
"Of course, Sharon." Emma says, a hand stroking the girl's cheek and hair. Despite Emma not being a tremendously tactile person, SHARON is, she /needs/ touch like others need air, so, she gets it. Yes, somebody will likely snap a pic, stupid paparazzi. She even smiles! "Oh, that is an excellent choice, Pris. I highly recommend it." Her satisfaction with the company, Sharon's accomplishment, and the day is quite tangible to the three Frosts.
And then there's a blurry fellow on the table, batting and then dropping…dear lord…a /bullet/ on the table. Large caliber too! That would have been real problem, especially when the shot isn't even heard until after he zips off again.
Emma's mind reaches out for the man, she knows of the Avenger known as Quicksilver, they've even met in passing. "Don't worry, he's a friendly." «Thank you, Mister Maximoff, how can we help?»
On a nearby rooftop, the sniper blinks as his bullet is plucked from the air. "Well…fuck." He has just enough time to say before Pietro is running up the side of the building. He pulls the pin of a grenade, drops it into the bag that held his gun, and starts legging it towards the exit. Yeah, not going to end well for the man, is it?
The one problem when in a crowded city: ones' thoughts are pulled in close, lest one is overwhelmed. It is the only reason the sniper was able to take that shot undetected, but Priscilla is rather irked about it all. She just managed to find and secure a family. Now some bastard is trying to kill her family? The Avenger had better be fast, or there might not be enough of this guy left!
Catseye rumbles, MOST displeased at the threat to MotherMotherFrost! She starts to rise, then hesitates. "No, fastone will be to sniper before Catseye can cross the green." She turns to the head of the guard, and gestures to the bullet. "Call the police. Chain of evidence must be maintained." Her tail lashes in quiet fury, but she takes a deep breath, lets it out slowly. Then calmly orders the grilled fig appetizer, lobster risotto, and lemonade to drink. She hesitates, "Bring a second glass of lemonade, and the pitcher." She is running numbers in her head… Speedsters have to burn a lot of calories.
While he isn't quite used to telepaths, Pietro still makes use of one when she presents herself. « Which building has the sniper? » Is asked briskly as he finds the rooftop juuust in time to spot grenade dropped. Which means the sniper gets some seconds as the speedster takes that grenade and throws it as hard as he can into the sky. Only after that does he turn his attention to the assassin himself. "That wasn't very nice at all." Noted sternly.
Emma is only too happy to help him locate the sniper, and she keeps her daughters in the link as well. She carefully does not touch the bullet, she has enough knowledge of Forensic science to appreciate how that is a concern, and then orders her own meal, going light with a salad with grilled chicken, as well as (naughty girl), French Onion soup -with- the cheese and crouton, thank you very much.
A hand gently presses to one of Pris's. "Things are being handled." And sensing Cat's intentions, she smiles. "Quicksilver, an Avenger. Privately to Cat and Pris. «Also a mutant, though we're not well acquainted.» She also sends to Pietro and the girls. «Careful, he is also holding a deadman switch, apparently unwilling to go gently.»
The thug stops short when cut off, the grenade going boom about a mile or two in the sky. "No, well, I'm an assassin, we're not generally known for being warm and fuzzy."
Priscilla glances in the direction of the shot and resists the urge to grind her teeth. She looks at Emma's hand and is honestly a bit put out by the implication that she is not allowed to get involved. She will pout later. Instead, she looks to Catseye. "We are stepping up security." It's not a question, but a statement; Emma's daughters are in charge of security, and quite ruthless about it. They will find a way to prevent anything like this from ever happening again. They will not depend on the kindness of randomly passing Avengers for the future of their family.
Pris orders the chicken and a side ceasar salad, with sweetened iced tea. "Are we allowed to pillage his mind? I want whomever hired him." The purple-eyed telepath inquires sharply of Emma.
Catseye nods thoughtfully. A known hero, and one who is either heroic enough to save a former villain or who believes when Emma says she is a FORMER villain. Either way, she's put Quicksilver's image and scent firmly in mind. He saved MotherFrost, he's now on Catseye's Good Side. "Can't stop every threat, PrissyKitten. Will do a security review, yes. See if this could have been forseen. But MotherFrost will not live in cage, even for own protection. Neither will Catseye." She gives Pris a sympathetic smile. "Is hard. Want to wrap loved ones in bubble wrap and keep safe, yes? But… have to still live."
« Why can't they ever be reasonable? » Asked of the dead man's switch. The explosion is sure to be seen an heard from the ground, but Pietro isn't paying attention to that. Taking in everything, Quicksilver barely seems to pause as he seeks to grip the hand that's holding that switch. Trying to make sure that it doesn't go off, and having some fun in the process. His eyes flash as he grins. "Not generally known for intelligence either." If the switch can be stopped, he'll rip the wires from the man too.
Emma leans her head to rest brow to brow with Pris. "We /will/ get whatever information we need to take steps and to find the truth. I am not going to prevent you, but as fast as Quicksilver moves he'll have stopped him before any of us could get near, even you." A squeeze to Pris's hand. "I /trust/ you, I have faith, but we need not run off when there's a helpful hero, this time, were he not there? Absolutely you and Sharon would be en route."
She nods to support what Cat says, and then bespeaks the lot of folks. «Reasonable men don't murder from a half mile away, and have scorched earth reprisals in the face of failure.»
She sips her tea, content enough, after all she's been almost assassinated on many occasions. Kind of old hat.
Catseye nods and forces herself to settle, smoothing her skirts. "Quicksilver? Is appropriate name." She will keep calm, keep control… though the tip of her tail IS twitching suggesting a tension she is trying to hide. "Perhaps will join us for dinner? Is least we can do." She's already planning on doing more. Hank might know an appropriate thank you… Heroes don't do it for the thanks, but she wants to thank him. Maybe food a basket? Definitely putting him on the christmas card list…
Priscilla leans into the touch of Emma, sighing bitterly. "I think a mini-drone network might be in order." she protests, but aquiesces to not leave the table, to not pursue this murderer, and to wait to see if this Quicksilver person can actually manage to catch him rather than allow him to suicide. She finds it very difficult to be sufficiently calm and blase about this. But she will try. She might also help Catseye with plans to reward Pietro; that's kind of her style.
Pietro deactivates the vest of explosives the man is wearing, and even tears it off him. Then using the man's own attire, the assassin is trussed up like a turkey and hung for the police. The explosives are dropped in that bag, since Pietro so doesn't want to deal with it further.. and woosh! He's off the building and reappearing at the table. Isn't even wearing his costume. A nice pair of slacks, a button down shirt, and suspenders. Sadly the man is wearing running shoes. "Forgive my intrusion, ladies. I hope I didn't disturb your meal too badly." Doesn't expect to be welcomed in, but he does want to ask, "Has anyone called the authorities? I have secured the malcontent. They can find him on the rootop." Or so he hopes the assassin remains to be found.
"Dinner at the very least." Emma agrees. And since there's no guarantee that he'll even be returning… «Mister Maximoff, do please stop by after you deal with the assassin, we should like very much to extend our thanks for your kind assistance.»
"Only if we can stealth them sufficiently, I'll speak to Nathan in R&D, he might have some ideas. Unfortunately any measures we take, will have counter-measures sooner or later." And then…poof…speak of the devil and he shall appear! "Actually, it would be a surly lady indeed who did not offer thanks when you saved her life." Emma motions for Pietro to sit. "Please, join us." She smiles to her daughters. "Allow me to make the introductions - Mister Pietro Maximoff, my daughters, Sharon and Priscilla. Girls, this is the Avenger known as Quicksilver, though we've not met before."
Sharon nods, "Security has called the authorities." The waitress arrives with drinks and appetizers, and Catseye directs her to put the second lemonade and the grilled fig plate in front of Pietro. "Please. Was not sure what would want, but thought something sweet perhaps?" Sharon's speech patterns are odd. It's not an accent, the way she pronounces words is flawless, it is the word choice that is slightly askew, as if everything was run through a translator before she opens her mouth. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance." That has the feeling of a memorized phrase. "Though could wish better circumstances, yes?" That sound more like her. Her tail twitches, moving in counterpoint to her words.
Priscilla is a mite glassy-, glowing-purple-eyed for a few moments as Pietro is introduced; having been assured the assassin is alive, she is already seeking out that one frustrated, mouth-frothingly helpless mind amongst all of the others and delving quite deep, looking for everything he knows about who hired him, when, how, why, and what other orders or details were given. It won't be everything they need, but it should be enough for a start.
Telepathic ethics? Pris would fail in a heartbeat where family safety is concerned.
Once done, Pris turns to Pietro and nods. "Thank you, for saving Emma. And for catching that shooter before he could get away or kill anyone else." She really will calm down eventually. Her mixed-up southern accent gets stronger when she's upset.
Pietro himself does have an accent. While his English is excellent, he speaks with a clear Eastern European tone. The man's eyes are rather too bright a blue to be normal human, even if you didn't know he was powered by simply having seen it. Bemused at the offers, which feels unusual for the Avenger, he'll still find himself smiling as food appears. Well then. His thoughts are going to be strange to read for sheer speed, but otherwise he's no real shields. "My pleasure." At meeting you all. "And.. thank you." Gracious about the offer, as well as the food, he sits himself at their table. "I'd call this more than payment enough. And yes, if only there could have been better circumstances, but making due is a life skill." Pris is watched for her strange glassy-eyed look, but he nods once she speaks. "I admit it was chance. I was passing through when I spotted the muzzle flash."
Pris would be able to rip some answers from the guy's mind, alas the hiring agent was just that - a third party, and the assassin (Xander 'Coral Snake' Grace) doesn't know who he was hired by. Still, she can get the image of the third party, a rather energetic young man who goes by Vance. Just Vance, and she'd know he met with Coral Snake at a former convent turned into a bar, a merc bar.
"Better circumstances would have been nice, yes." Emma agrees with Cat and Pietro. And yes, Pris would not pass most such courses about Ethics and Telepathy, but…neither would Emma, survival comes first. "I should say my life is worth a bit more than a simple meal, Mister Maximoff, I hope you'll allow me—us, to be of service should you ever need anything?" A smile. "Luck, perhaps…but you also chose to act. That's /important/."
Sharon nods, "Is not just being in the right place at the right time, it is being willing to act decisively." Sharon pauses as the police finally show up at their table, to take the bullet into police care and start the chain of evidence. They'll want to question everyone but… money talks. Or in this case, clears it's throat and points out that this is not the time or the place. So there will be questions for the Frost Ladies but… later. In private.
Priscilla makes careful note of all she learns, and resolves to share it all with Emma and Catseye after dinner, when it won't be distracting either of them from their meal or their guests. She also tries her best not to tense up at the presence of the police, but she is only partially succesful; a lifetime's experience does not evaporate just because one has now both powers and a wealthy family. And women who look like she does have always had problems with the police where she comes from. She will be polite and respectful, but asking her to be sanguine is something else entirely.
"Catseye is right. You happened by; that was chance. But you were the sort of person to decide to involve himself and take decisive action. That is worthy of note, appreciation, and respect." Pris murmurs. She's not yet ready to eat, but she does sip at her wipe wine while they chat. "if the snack isn't enough, please let us know. If you're still hungry."
There's a soft laugh and the man lifts his hands in surrender. Okay, okay.. Pietro did save a life today. He is totally outnumbered and admits defeat. "That's why I'm an Avenger." It really is that simple for the man. Priscilla is assured, "Don't worry about me. I have everything I need." Very much samples what was brought for him too. Delicious! Of course the police are watched, but in that they take themselves away again.. he's seen wealth like this before, but that doesn't mean he's comfortable with it. "He must have been paid a great deal for this. Does it happen often?"
"Sharon goes by Catseye, as if that weren't obvious, Mister Maximoff." Emma just wants to be completely clear. What's funny? Emma has grown use to the power and influence she lives in, though she's lived without any such thing for years, she's much more comfortable being a string puller given the choice.
"No, Mister Maximoff, that's why you're a Hero." Emma corrects with a faint smile, very gently. Emma doesn't even have to do more than nod to her security team lead and the cops will be dealt with.
At the question. "Oh, from time to time. One cannot be a CEO billionaire and not make a few enemies. I cannot say it isn't upsetting, but it is…something I am always cognizant of."
Should Pietro wish to, he'd be welcome to eat with the ladies, and Emma /will/ make sure he has all their contact information, as well as invite him to dinner.