ArchivedLogs:Caffeine Quest

Caffeine Quest
Dramatis Personae Ducky, Horus
In Absentia	2013-09-22 '
Location <NYC> SoHo
The first of the many camelcased neighborhoods, SoHo - South of Houston Street - is a neighborhood of exposed cast-iron buildings and sett-paved streets home to many artists' lofts and art galleries. Trendy is the watch-word of the neighborhood, and even as gentrification has begun pushing out some of the very people who make it so, many starving artists still hold onto the valuable real estate for its hip reputation, beautiful architecture, and many, many stores. It's been a pleasant day, crisp fall weather though the cooler temperatures have not prompted any greater protective layers of clothing for Horus, apparently perfectly content in his mottled feathering. The walk from the Lofts to SoHo is not an /overly/ long one -- perhaps a mile and a half, though Horus's taloned feet are clearly not designed for lengthy treks. He's hopped along in places, fluttered along through most, and kept up an almost ceaseless stream of cheerful chatter throughout. The cheerful chatter has not been dampened by the occasional brief detours on this trek, into one coffeeshop and then another; Horus seems more /amused/ than discouraged by his repeated ejections from them -- he's been keeping a /list/ on his tablet of the places he visits and their reactions like maybe if he collects every coffeeshop in the city he will get a PRIZE. As he leads the way through SoHo, though, his chatter has shifted into questions, about Ducky's classes and friends and life. He's using his tablet to talk even though it's not necessary, still delighted with the ability to /do/ so; the rapid swiping of his stylus and smooth monotonous voice it speaks in can't really keep /up/ with his mental stream of thought but he persists. "How much more of school do you have what will you do after? Maybe by then Micah will learn to make wings we can take a trip all the trips I guess there are other ways to fly than having wings. Will you go to college? Some people do that. It's more reading do you like reading? Do you like class?" The crisp chill in the air has driven Ducky to add at least a few layers to her normal outfit, wearing a fitted long sleeved shirt in a dove gray beneath the bright yellow hooded fleece vest, a pair of worn black skinny jeans and constantly untied hiking boots completing the look. The dappled gray and white pigeon who has been her near constant companion is nestled in the hood of her vest, head barely peeking out to watch what goes on around them. Ducky has kept pace with Horus along the path, accompanying him into the ill-fated coffee shop side quests, pigeon and all. Although initially discouraged by the negative reactions, she's now joined in on the game of collecting reactions. Amazingly, Ducky shows some improvement in her mental control, since their original meeting - the once somewhat obnoxious mental undercurrent of chattering birdsong has quieted to a minimum, more an accent than a secondary voice. She's kept up the quick chattering pace, answering Horus's questions and chatting gleefully as they walk, "I think I've got another year to go after this, as long as I take classes over the summer, too. And then I'll be all caught up from the time when I was kinda homeless sorta. Which will be good, I think." A hand ruffles through her hair as she continues talking, "I would like to go to college, I think, but I still don't know exactly what. I'm in Environmental Sciences right now, and I kinda think I want to go into conservation, maybe? Something outside, with nature. Possibly getting to work with birds, without having to go into Veterinary medicine. I'd rather get to be outside. I like reading well enough, I guess, and if reading for classes means I get to do something useful with myself, even better." She sighs slightly, a sort of amused smile on her lips, tucking her hands into the pockets of her vest, "I wish I could fly. I get asked that, a lot. So far, best suggestion not involving jet packs has been a hot air balloon. Not exactly a speedy mode of transportation. Maybe hang gliding, though, that could probably work, but not so good for travelling distances, or getting around the city." "Oh! Conservation that sounds cool that would be awesome also maybe you'd get to fly around for work! Not with wings I mean with airplanes they fly too." Horus lands every time he starts to type, making their progress somewhat slower. "Will you go somewhere else? For college? I mean there's a lot of colleges in the city I have some friends in them you can choose a close college. Here. Maybe?" In mind, here, he sounds so much more /hopeful/ than his tablet's monotone can manage. "Oh oh oh look we can have a new quest! Ducky-flying-quest. I bet we can do it. Not this weekend though um we probably have to save that quest for a new weekend it might take longer than an afternoon." "It kind of depends on what I'm trying to conserve. I mean, there's the tropical rainforest, but /everyone/ is trying to conserve that, and not much is done for the local forests. So I think I kinda want to stay local, yeah, maybe," Ducky responds, a sheepish grin towards Horus at the hopeful tone to the question, "I'm probly going to meet with Mister Jackson later this semester to see about colleges, but I'm looking at ones in New York State a lot more than ones out and around the country. I like it here - and it's close to home. Just gotta see what programs there are." She giggles at the idea of flight, looking up idly at the birds that have started to follow along their path, "I've only been on a plane once, when I was kinda little. My parents took me to Disney World for vacation when I was about 5. Honestly can't remember much about it, but it was neat, getting to see everything from the air, I just remember getting to see the tops of the clouds, and the sun rising over them." A happy smile crosses her features at the memory. "Conserve everything," is Horus's answer to this, more cheerful still after hearing that Ducky is looking at New York colleges. "All the things. Every place. Shane wants to do that, you know. Um not forests oceans. Rivers? Waters? Maybe oceans. Oh-oh-oh maybe if you guys find someone else who wants to conserve grasslands and someone who wants to conserve deserts and I don't know maybe a wetlands person you can make some kind of environmental superhero group! Saving the world. Through education. I'd join except for I don't have an education so I will just cheerlead do you need pom-poms for that, I can't hold those Micah will have to make me special cheerleading appendages." His wings stretch out, here, fluttering briefly in thoughtful speculation as to how they would look with pom-poms attached; he pulls them back in against his sides with a quiet chirruping when the flex of large wings earns him a startled reaction from a woman trying to push a stroller down the sidewalk. "Oops sorry," apologizes his tablet once he has recovered his stylus -- it's been hung around his neck with a lanyard, now, which is probably a Very Good Thing given how often he accidentally drops it with sudden outbursts of chirping instead. The tablet-apology doesn't really /help/ the woman's gawking surprise, though she continues onward after only a long baffled look at the birdlike teen. "Clouds are so so pretty from the up-side," he agrees with Ducky. "I'm going to talk to Micah and Sebastian they can make ANYTHING I bet." He attempts to underline 'anything' with his stylus despite the full knowledge that typing on his screen does not really work that way in this particular text application. "Did you like Disney World do you like theme parks oh! I bet we could totally go to Coney Island they have rides there too you know although probably not as many as Disney World." Ducky giggles brightly at the idea of conserving all the things, nodding, "I wish I could save the world. Would be totally awesome. Not easy, but awesome. I wish the world could be saved by saving the environment. So much easier. But yeah, maybe I'll teach, or do outreach. There's the programs like Scales and Tales and stuff, and they show off the different animals to kids." She nods and giggles at the idea, "I wonder if I could get an internship in the Summer with them. I mean, it'd be kinda neat - they have hawks and falcons and owls that were hurt, and can't necessarily go back to the wild. So they get to help raise awareness of what influence people have on the world around them." Her voice trails off, and she just offers a cheery, friendly wave at the startled woman, continuing along her path with Horus, "Heee - I don't think you'd need pom-poms to be a cheerleader. You'd be a good cheerleader no matter what." There's a bit of a blush at the repeated mention of getting her flight, "I would like that, really, but, well, I think Micah has bigger things to worry about than letting me fly. Even if it would be amazing." The quick change of topic gets another giggle, and she nods, "I liked it, I think. It was a while ago, and it feels like a whole lifetime ago now, but it was fun, I think. Never been to Coney Island before. Didn't go that far around the city when I was here, but it would be neat. Maybe another weekend? Should be starting to get less crowded since it's getting colder - maybe we can plan on that the next time I can come visit." Smiling at this idea, Ducky continues bouncing along, a bit of a skip to her step at the idea of visiting again. "Oh! Oh that sounds fun. The Scales and um what was it? Tails and scales. Do you talk to owls much, they're not half so wise as people think they are. But I like night-birds anyway. The world's really different at night you know? They have a different perspective. One of my friends is a bat that's like a bird except not-a-bird his wings are better. Batter. Battier." Horus's twittering laughter drops his stylus from his beak again; he has to duck his head to carefully retrieve it from the end of its cord. "I don't know if you can save the world by saving the environment but you probably can't save the world without saving the environment." He stops writing for a short while to flutter along beside Ducky, scanning the nearby stores curiously. << Around here somewhere it's around here oh wow everything always looks so different from the sidewalk how do people navigate from down here is this even the right street hmm shouldn't Montagues have an apostrophe in it what a weird name maybe I will open a tea store and call it Capulets. >> He doesn't make it /far/ down the block without stopping (very /conscientiously/, something in the back of his mind reminding him of assurance to Micah that he would not fly-and-text, unsure if this caution applies even to flying only a foot off the ground but not wanting to break his promise /anyway/) to write again. "Maybe a cheerleader skirt then! Also Micah has so many things to worry about. :( He worries a lot I think! At least that is what Hive says Hive worries about him a lot maybe it's like a whole worrying chain. I'll totally take you to Coney Island next time you visit they have many things there. Like funnel cakes? Those are THE BEST cakes. Well. Maybe not the best cakes there are people in my building who make the best cakes except funnel cakes is a different kind I don't actually know why they're called cake at all they're not very cakey." "Scales and Tales. And I don't really get to talk to owls much. Or most birds that come out at night. I end up having issues staying awake normally, so I end up kinda not getting to talk to as huge of a variety as there are at school," Ducky muses, scuffing her foot against the sidewalk as she talks, "One of these days, though, I'm totally going to camp out in the treehouse at school, and get to talk to the owls in the forest. Just so I can say I've talked to an owl." There's a bright grin at that, and she scans around the area, "I dunno where it is, actually. Melinda's the one who helped me get into school, and she said she worked there, but I never really got over to the actual storefront before. Though, yeah, I guess it should have an apostrophe, unless the person it was named after was actually named Montagues, but that's kinda odd. Or, maybe it's a Romeo and Juliett reference. But that seems kinda like a bad plan, I mean, if you called something Capulets, it would just invite all sorts of rivalry and a sad ending." Somehow she gets most of this out in one breath, before giggling and grinning at the skirt idea, "You could totally pull that off if you wanted! And yeah, Micah seems kinda full of worry. Good at cooking breakfast though, which was kinda awesome. He seems nice, though, I'm sorry he worries so much." Another brightening and a bit of a skip at the agreement to go to Coney Island, "Ok! I haven't had a funnel cake in forever. They're good, especially with the powdered sugar and all - though that gets kinda messy, and I almost always end up with powdered sugar down the front of me which isn't exactly good, but it's so worth it though." She's just a ball of excited energy, chattering in response almost as fast as Horus asks the questions. "Can I camp out? With you? I do a lot of flying at night there's less people? And they don't notice me so. It's better. But then you talk to night-birds it's so much different than day-birds. I fly with my bat friend. Well he's not really a bat he's like batman? Woah you know Melinda? She comes over sometimes. To our building. I hide but once she gave me a food. What if I make a Capulets tea store and we rewrite the ending? Instead of death we have a delicious caffeine feast." Horus's soft warble here is quietly amused. He flutters along again after this, still looking side to side at the buildings around. "Oh! Oh the powder is the best part if I just eat funnel cakes all day I can turn into a white bird. Powdery-Horus. Snowbird. It's like putting on a costume! I like them with cinnamon too. Also Micah is the nicest. THE NICEST. Maybe not the nicest? I mean Jax is also the nicest. Can a lot of people be the nicest? Because they're both the nicest and Flicker is the nicest and maybe they can have a nice-off that would be the kindest kind of rivalry, everyone would end up with cake." Ducky blinks curiously at Horus's first question, unsure, "I... don't actually know. I mean, I totally wouldn't object, cause it would be awesome, like a sleepover! But, um, there are kinda rules about non-students staying over the night, but that's in the dorms. I... I dunno what the rules are for staying at the /treehouse/, which is obviously totally different." She nods and grins, "I haven't really gotten to talk to birds at night much, it's kinda rare - like if I'm outside really late, but it's kinda not really something I can do at the school much." Nodding emphatically, Ducky grins, "Yeah. Melinda volunteered at the homeless shelter I was staying at, and when she found out I was a mutant, she put me in touch with Mister Jax, and he was able to get me enrolled in the school and all." She giggles at the image of Horus covered in powdered sugar, glancing over at him, "I think there might be easier ways to have a snowbird costume. And sugar seems like it would be kinda hard to get out of feathers, 'specially /that/ much powdered sugar. Haven't had one with cinnamon before, just a mountain of powdered sugar. Which was awesome. But yeah, I guess a Capulets tea store wouldn't be bad, as long as we get to rewrite the ending, and maybe some of the story. Comdey, not tragedy. Much better for all involved I think. More tea and cookies and laughter, less poison and death and fighting." Ducky grins and nods emphatically, giggling a bit. "I don't know about the dorm-rules I've slept in the trees there many times, that's like sleeping in the treehouse right? Oh oh oh Melinda got you there that was nice is she nice? Shane says she's nice he works at the same place? But I don't know she's very," here Horus pauses in his typing for a while, considering before finishing, "tall. We need to get you one with cinnamon you have not lived until you've had one oh oh oh look look look!" Horus pokes at the air in front of them with his stylus, gesturing across the street. "Look I found it it's a Montagues it's going to be the set of our next epic comedy. Don't get hit crossing the street okay or it's a tragedy instead!" Horus doesn't quite have that problem, flitting high enough into the air to be above the cars -- though he doesn't actually cross, just wings over to the nearest crosswalk to wait for Ducky, fidgeting from leg to leg as he waits for the light to change. "Oh! Well, I mean, if you've stayed the night in the trees before, then I doubt they'd mind you staying in the treehouse. I mean, it's totally got tree in the name, practically the same thing," Ducky says with a giggle, "And yeah, Melinda was really nice. She was honestly concerned about me, but yeah, she is kinda really tall. But she's nice. I mean, she volunteers at a homeless shelter, and she helps out mutant kids. Which is /really/ nice. I mean, I got thrown out of shelters before when people realized that I was the reason the birds were starting to swarm the roof and stuff." There's a bit of a guilty look at that admission, but then she's startled by Horus's exclamation, and she looks up and around, grinning at the sight of the long searched for coffee shop, "Oh! Yay! We found it!" There's a little bit of a nervous look as Horus flutters away, but Ducky heads for the crosswalk, carefully watching the signs before starting to cross. She skips, hops, and generally makes her way across as quickly as possible, finally stopping beside Horus on the other side. "See! Totally ok, didn't get hit or anything. Now, we can totally go check out the setting for the next leg of the epic comedic quest-venture!" Ducky says with a giggle, bouncing a few steps towards the fabled coffee shop. "I'm not tall," Horus explains while waiting at the crosswalk. He flits across above Ducky's head, lighting on the sidewalk beside her at the other side. "Just one leg of many," comes, again, far brighter in his mind than out of his tablet, chipper and cheerful before he follows her off towards Montagues.