ArchivedLogs:Fantastic Tails

Fantastic Tails
Dramatis Personae Marinov, Fiona
In Absentia	2016-12-21 "... are you a mutant, too?"
Location <NYC> Tompkins Square Park - East Village
Small but popular, this tree-lined park is a perfect centerpiece to the eclectic neighborhood it resides in. Home to a number of playgrounds and courts from handball to basketball, it also houses a dog park and chess tables, providing excellent space for people watching -- especially during its frequent and often eccentric festivals, from Wigstock to its yearly Allen Ginsberg tribute Howl festival. A bit out of her depth, she is - Fiona looks somewhat lost. Well, maybe lost is the wrong word - but judging by the way she keeps looking around the place, she's not really from around here. It's almost a shell-shock. It's rather cold out this evening, even though it's not so late. She sits on a park bench with a worn backpack, the kind hikers would use, tossed down by her feet. Every now and then, a muted light seems to glow in front of her, and steam rises from a mug that she holds close to her face. You know, as discrete as possible. If one gets a closer look, they might notice the red color of her skin, or the thick tail curled around her side mostly covered by her coat, as well. Despite the cold, Marinov is off on a run. They are wearing a tank top and a pair of yoga pants, but not a lot else, aside from the backpack on their back. The teen has been running laps around the park area for some time, but they pause to catch their breath not too far away from where Fiona's at. The felinoid teen glances around with slitted eyes, but upon smelling something, they glance in Fiona's direction. A hand is raised in acknowledgement. Marinov knows well that obvious mutations can be hard to hide, and sometimes people need to know they are not alone in the world. Hearing footsteps, Fiona looks up... and sees a cat person. She's never seen a cat person before. She is apparently holding in her hands a cup of instant hot cocoa; the cup is dinged and scratched, looks like it is probably made of aluminum. Typical camper gear. The (dragon?) girl looks a bit shocked, but she does offer Marinov a nervous wave in return, after which she takes her glasses off, cleans them with the edge of her shirt tail, and then puts them back on. "H-hi," she offers, after which she nervously slurps at the cocoa. "Hey," replies Marinov, lowering their hand back to their side, "You doing alright, there? You look like you're ready to get your camp set up in the park, I don't think they much like tents being set up, but whatever works for you." They start to stretch, since every workout should finish with a good stretching session. "I mean, maybe? I mean. Yeah. I think I saw that on news once," Fiona seems to recall some protests. When she was younger and didn't really care about that sort of thing. Vaguely. She stares rather intently at Marinov. "I mean, I'm doing okay, I think," nods the girl, slurping on her cocoa some more. "Do you know a good place to sleep around here? Everything's so... big. There's not really any space." More staring. "... are you a mutant, too?" "Yeah, I'm a mutant too. I mean, I assume you are one, or else you're really into the whole body modification scene," says Marinov, clearly meaning the latter as a joke. "I don't really know of many good places to sleep out here, no... are you going to be alright? Are you going to be cold out here?" "Really?" Fiona looks over Marinov, "I mean, I thought so. But, I didn't wanna assume. I've never met another mutant before! I mean, that I know of," she pauses, looking around. "I don't know, though. I just got here. I just. You know, I heard there were a lot of mutants in New York. But, I mean. Yeah. There's really nowhere to sleep around here?" she murmurs, "Everything's really expensive, too. I mean, I'm sure I'll be- ACHOO!" the girl sneezes, spurting out flame from her nose and spilling a little of her drink. "Ah, sorry about that..." Marinov hops back in surprise at the first coming out of Fiona's nose, "Whoa!" They start smoothing their tail immediately after, as it has poofed out from being surprised. "Uh, I guess there's a lot of mutants, yeah, more than there were back home I guess," says Marinov, shrugging a shoulder, "I think it's mostly 'cause the community is pretty active here. Personally, I just go to school here, so that's the long and short of it." They pause, "So... fire breathing, huh?" Fiona leans over, peering at Marinov's tail in surprise. "Ah, yeah, it just sorta started happening a few months ago. I mean, I was born like this, but I didn't always breath fire. It's kind of annoying sometimes... good for cooking though! Kind of. And um. Yeah! There weren't really any mutants at all where I'm from. 'cept me." More leaning and peering. "That is so cool." The tip of her own tail twitches as it hangs off the bench. "We both have tails!" Squee. Marinov glances back to check and make sure that Fiona's statement is true, and they nod a couple of times, "Yeah, that's true enough. About a year ago, I changed from looking like just some kid to looking like this. I guess you were one of those people who are born with their difference, huh?" They tilt their head slightly in thought and wonder, "Was that tough growing up? I mean, I was bullied growing up, but I imagine it would've been worse if I had a visible mutation at the time..." "I mean, I dunno. Not really. Everyone was really nice... mostly," Fiona nods, "Ah, some assholes started messing with me and wouldn't leave me alone about a year ago though... I don't think think they were from our town. But. I left because of that," she nods, peering around at the scenery some more. "I mean," she looks down at her cocoa again, breathing a small flame onto it. Heatwaves billow up and she takes another sip, "I mean, I guess they tried to kill me. A couple times. I dunno if that counts as bullying." Her tail twitches again more nervously seeming this time. "I just didn't want people getting hurt because of me. So, I left." "I sorta think that attempted murder is a step beyond what I'd call 'bullying', yeah," says Marinov with a headshake, "Sorry to hear that happened to you. I hope nothing like that happens to you again." Marinov says this in a way that's meant to be encouraging, but there's a bit of doubt. "In any case, I'd say that you should be cautious... So... did your parents move here as well, or anything? 'cause it seems like you're pretty alone. How old are you?" "Nah, I didn't come here with them... I came by myself," Fiona states, slurping the last bit of hot chocolate and then shoving the cup into a pocket on her bag. "I walked here. Sort of. Some parts I got rides. I am cautious, though, I guess?" she ponders that for a moment. In reality she probably doesn't really know the meaning of the word, "I'll be sixteen in two... three days? The twenty-fourth." she hefts the backpack up easily onto the bench, rummaging around in it. "Yeah, I don't really know anybody here or anything." "Oh... I turned sixteen a few months ago, myself," says Marinov. They cross their arms and cup one hand beneath their chin in consideration, "Don't you think your parents are gonna be worried or whatever? Where are you planning on going to school?" They sound concerned for Fiona's well-being. "Oh... I still have my phone. I call them and stuff. They're definitely SUPER worried about me. But I mean, I think maybe they understand. I hope," Fiona pauses, "Someone kind of tried to blow me up, like, with a bomb, at home. It totally destroyed the store I was in and hurt a bunch of people... I guess I wasn't really planning on going to school anywhere..." Fiona trails off, looking at the ground. "I have books and stuff. And I can survive on my own. Ish," she shrugs, biting her lip, which shows one of her fangs. "I don't really think I can go back to school back home, anyway." "Well, I mean... you might want to consider finding a place to go to school in the city, yeah?" says Marinov, glancing around, "There's a nice place that you might be able to get a scholarship for if you apply, it's called Xavier's, you might have heard of it. That's where I go. It's not perfect, but it's a pretty good deal." They shrug and then sit down on the bench, crossing one leg over the other. "But whatever, if you think you can hack it on your own, it's not up to me to stop you. I just... it's hard, you know? Sticking out in a place like this. It's hard." "I guess I thought it'd be better here..." frowns Fiona somewhat. "Well, it already is better... I dunno, maybe I'm being kinda stupid." She quirks a brow at Marinov, "Xavier's, huh? I dunno. I mean, maybe. I just don't really know what to do right now. Just, I couldn't stay there. I'm pretty sure the police knew what was going on and couldn't or wouldn't do anything to stop it..." she shakes her head, "I need to think about it. It's getting late though. I better find a place to bed down. I'm sure there's a decent bridge or something somewhere around here." She stands up, picking her pack up; it strains against the strap but doesn't seem that heavy to her. "Do you come here pretty often? Or, here," she digs out her phone, "You got a number? I'll text you." "Well, alright, I guess you've gotta do what's right for you, right? I just hope that you'll be alright out here. And... Yeah, I've got a number," says Marinov, pulling out their phone. They give their number to Fiona and, if she is so inclined, takes it down as well. "I'm Marinov. Taylor Marinov, nice to meet you. What should I put for your contact name in here?" "Oh!" Fiona facepalms, "I'm Fiona! Uh, Fiona... Firecam..." she rubs one of her arms, sounding kind of embarassed. "I SWEAR ITS REAL," she shrugs helplessly "My grandparents were total hippies," she sighs. "Anyway, I don't think... I mean, I don't think it'd be right for me to follow you home or anything. We just met. I'll be okay, seriously, I'm a looot tougher than I look. I'll text you or give you a call, like, tomorrow, okay?" "Oh, yeah, I don't think you should follow me home, just... just look out for yourself, alright?" says Marinov, nodding once. "I'm looking forward to hearing from you tomorrow. I've gotta get going, need to be back before curfew hits." They wave at Fiona and tuck their phone back in the back pocket, "Seeya, Fiona." As soon as Fiona's acknolwedge the goodbye, Marinov is back to running.