ArchivedLogs:Collective Orbits

Collective Orbits
Dramatis Personae Micah, Domino
In Absentia	13 March 2015 '
Location <NYC> Evolve Cafe - Lower East Side
Spacious and open, this coffeeshop has a somewhat industrial feel to it, grey resin floors below and exposed-beam ceilings that have been painted up in a dancing swirl of abstract whorls and starbursts, a riot of colour splashed against a white background. The walls alternate between brick and cheerfully lime-green painted wood that extends to the paneling beneath the brushed-steel countertops. There's an abundance of light, though rather than windows (which are scarce) it comes from plentiful hanging steel lamps. The walls here are home to plentiful artwork available for sale; though the roster of prints and paintings and drawings and photographs changes on a regular basis it has one thing in common -- all the artists displayed are mutants. The seating spaced around the room is spread out enough to keep the room from feeling cluttered. Black chairs, square black tables that mostly seat two or four though they're frequently pushed around and rearranged to make space for larger parties. In the back corner of the room is more comfortable seating, a few large black-corduroy sofas and armchairs with wide tables between them. There's a shelf of card and board games back here available for customers to sit and play. The chalkboard menus hanging behind the counter change frequently, always home to a wide variety of drinks (with an impressive roster of fair-trade coffees and teas largely featured) though their sandwiches and wraps and soups and snacks of the day change often. An often-changing variety of baked goods sit behind the display case at the counter halfway back in the room, and the opposite side of the counter holds a small selection of homemade ice creams. A pair of single-user bathrooms flanks the stairway in back of the cafe; at night, the thump of music can be heard from above, coming from the adjoining nightclub of the same name that sits up the stairs above the coffeehouse. There is a misting rain darkening the almost-spring afternoon, but people generally don't seem very /troubled/ by it. Perhaps not being snow, ice, or any other form of wintry slush is helping the situation. Micah has an olive newsboy cap on to match his canvas jacket, brim pulled down and collar turned up against the damp. The redhead goes straight to a table that already has a man and a woman at it, waving friendly greetings and even depositing his jacket over a free chair there. It's handy enough since there aren't a lot of tables open during the later part of the lunch rush, rather colourful clientele filling the bustling place. As it turns out, the pair are about to leave. Micah delivers a little half-hug to each as they stand and wrap back into their outerwear. "See you back at the Clinic later. Mornin' ran long, so I'm 'bout an hour down-shifted from the usual schedule." Left in a TARDIS-blue polo shirt over a slate henley and khakis, hair rather impressively tousled once out from under its hat, Micah moves up into the line to order his lunch and coffee. Better late than never, though 'late' in this case is 'a few days ago.' Domino's still finding her way around the city, making connections for any number of reasons as she's able to. Just the other day she heard about this Evolve place. Now between the current turmoil on that whole mutant situation and her own curiosity she just has to make some time to check it out with her own eyes. 'Enlightening' is a word for it. Yet again she has to wonder why so many of these mutants are so ..out there after everything that's happened in this neck of the woods over the last few years. Seems crazy! But, open conflict also means potential job opportunities. And coffee. Coffee's always a good start with her. Compared to all of the other colorful souls in the room her arrival might seem like throwing a black hole into the center of a galaxy, black on black with a white core which remains mostly shrouded within the dark layers. Fall fashion, it isn't just for Fall! Wearing sunglasses on a rainy day, though... That might have been a little much. The frames slip away from her face while a hand clad in a fingerless leather glove runs through her messy pile of wet hair, going so far as to shake herself out a little on her way to stand in line. The first person to give her a glance gets a quick incline of her chin in greeting and a "'Sup." She belongs here, honest! Micah puts in an order for a turkey and avocado sandwich, pickles, chips, and a mocha with the dark-haired, blue eyed, dressed all in black young woman behind the counter. “Thanks, Ravenna. Say hi t'Shane for me. Hopefully he gets a break at some point. S'usually pretty busy Friday nights, too.” Though he pays with a card, he tucks a couple of bills into the tip jar before moving aside to wait for pick-up. He turns just as Dom is greeting...whoever. Not sure, he defaults to assuming he might be included in that greeting and gives a smile and nod in return. Just in case, friendly is always the default. The glance is caught and returned without another word needing to be said, though there's something about the smile which causes Dom's blackened lips to hook upward in a good-natured smirk. That the guy had also called the woman behind the counter by name, well..nothing says 'regular customer' like knowing the people that help run the place. Though, as soon as the albino turns back to look at Ravenna she pauses for a moment. As it turns out they're both dark-haired and blue eyed women dressed all in black. Go figure. Her mouth opens slightly then is held in check, a light frown crossing her features. She ..doesn't really have a clue what to order. Canting her head she looks back to the normal looking guy that had been ahead of her in line. "You seem like you know this place well. What's good? And skip that 'everything's good here' line, everyone has their favorites." Oddly enough, this is Dom attempting to be friendly. Rounding out the edges costs extra. The similarities between the barista and the customer don't pass Micah by, either. This is the likely reason for the amused lopsided-grin that sits goofily on his face. “Evr'ythin' here /is/ good, though I wouldn't've left y'hangin' just with that. Drinks I'd go chai or mocha. They make an amazin' cashew cream if y'have a sweet tooth. The vegan chili's awesome. I was havin' an avocado cravin' so I didn't get it t'day m'self.” He gives a little nod, lifting a hand slightly. “I'm Micah, by the way. Always feel like conversations go better with introductions, even if they're short.” -Bullseye.- Domino may drink coffee like it's going out of style but she's a closeted fan of a good chai. The moment Micah mentions the word she's snapping her fingers and pointing back at Ravenna. "That. Yes. Chai. ..And vegan chili," she tacks on as an afterthought. While she's not vegan herself, chili is still chili. ..Right? It -should- still be chili. She's willing to take a chance with it. Order in, money down, next customer cycled forth. "Micah," she repeats once with a slight dip of her head. "Domino. Heard this place was making quite a name for itself, had to check it out. What's the news? ..Serious, I haven't been in town for long. This place is a damn zoo." “Chai's m'go-to when I don't want more caffeine, too,” Micah notes as Domino places her order. He collects his mocha as it is delivered, still hanging around for the food to show. “Domino,” he repeats, perhaps committing to memory. “S'a cool name. Nice meetin' you. News...about this place?” One brow raises curiously. He decides that this might be an inquiry as to the safety of a mutant-friendly cafe. “S'doin' pretty well this time 'round. The first one got fire-bombed; that's true if you've heard it. S'a bit more...secure this time, though. Usually there's some of the MID cops hangin' 'round who're friendly t'the cause of keepin' safe space for the people with abilities crowd. An' any number of people who're willin' t'help keep things safe. We've had...some destroyed windows but that's usually the worst of it.” A faint pink blush creeps over his cheeks. “I say 'we' likes it's my... It ain't. M'kid's one of the owners, so I just have a /little/ bit of feelin' invested.” A simple "Thanks" is given to the compliment, there and gone in a second. "Well, here, there, and everywhere," Dom clarifies regarding the local news. "Can't think of a better place to catch up on current events." Those specifically related to mutantkind, that is. Still, the answer she gets proves to be a good start. "Fire-bombed? I recall seeing something in the news to that effect but I thought it was some sort of clinic that got hit, not a cafe?" Maybe it happened to both? Maybe they're related... Maybe..there's a shot at some paying work for resolving anything left unresolved... She'll have to dig deeper to turn up any coin on this one. "Nice to know it's mostly safe around here lately." Just in case she needs to lose some heat in a hurry, or such. Though--wait. A curious look is passed to Micah when he mentions being related to one of the owners. Is..she hearing this right..? "You don't look that old," she declares with a slightly perplexed expression. "It's an excellent hangout," Micah agrees with a nod. "Oh, no. The place was destroyed a /long/ time ago, under the past management. M'son an' one of m'husband's good friends reopened it." His teeth find his lower lip, digging into it and creating little pale-divot depressions where they meet. "There was a bombin' at the Mendel Clinic, yeah. It's always a risk there 'cause some folks just won't never give up on fussin' over a place aimin' t'treat folks with special abilities specifically? The place is set up like a fortress but someone...pretended t'be bleedin' out on the sidewalk an' got In that way. Folks're okay, though. An' the explosion was pretty contained. We're operatin' business-as-usual again." There's that 'we' again. "Um. I work there. Contractin'. Prosthetics, orthotics, assistive tech." The blush deepens faintly, dragging up the back of his neck. "I'm...not, actually. Adopted kids." A soft 'Mmmh' of understanding comes from the albino woman. "Was getting my news stories crossed, or something. If it's not one thing it's a hundred others." That Micah also just outed himself with mention of a husband doesn't seem to bother her in the slightest. Who the heck would she be to judge, anyway? Though, with the lip-chewing she feels the need to point out "You look nervous." Mendel Clinic. This gets mentally filed away for later. As Micah starts going into further detail regarding it the name doesn't stay filed away for long, bouncing right back to the front of her thoughts. This...is all sounding very familiar to her all of a sudden... Even down to Micah saying 'we're' operating again. Contracting. Probably not the 'contracting' she's looking for, but... "You blush an awful lot, too. Look, you've got nothing to be embarrassed about here. In fact, I'm kind of glad we met. Few days ago I bumped into two other guys at the Museum of Modern Art, I think they're connected to the clinic as well. As luck would have it I'm rather keen on seeing that place stay in business, myself." A slight pause follows her words, long enough to retrieve her order as it comes up, before she asks, "They ever find who hit it?" “There are enough of those kindsa things that go on, unfortunately,” Micah agrees with a sigh. He slides his plate of sandwich and sides toward himself, moving a bit more to the side so as not to block other people still waiting for their orders to arrive. “Oh, not /nervous/ so much as it was the Clinic bombin' that just... It's hard. M'friends an' family have a tendency t'get /hurt/ when things like this happen. Enough of 'em work security there, on top of the people on medical staff.” Mentioning the blushing has the usual effect on him of...making it worse just from mentioning it. A hint of red tips his ears, as if in attempt to match the hair over them. “Yeah, they've got the guy, at least.” ..Damn. Okay, so that's a big negative on going all bounty hunter on the bomber dude. Domino simply nods once as she takes her two items and meanders toward a table which just happens to be clear at just the moment when she's looking for one. She even motions to an open seat with another dip of her head. "Yeah, bombing's an ugly business. Are you guys feeling like security is adequate these days?" she asks while setting her chai and chili down, then sitting herself down in a still warm chair. "It's one thing to keep the facility in order, but..sometimes it helps having some legs on the ground. Maybe there's some leads to follow, potential trouble brewing down the way." She could probably word all of this a lot better. "If you thought that some outside assistance might come in handy, that is," she suggests while reaching for her chai. She walks a fine line between being subtle and being in another's face when it comes to these matters. Micah gathers his items and gives a nod at the offer of sharing a table. He takes a moment to deposit his food and drink on the table before collecting his jacket from the spot that he'd left it, leaving it open for others to claim. When he returns, he slips into his seat and sips at the mocha. "Adequate? I mean...the buildin' /is/ a fortress. An' the security team is excellent. Were...you interested in joinin' up?" His brow furrows slightly, trying to figure out her angle. "I can give you the name of the head of security there if you wanna talk to 'er? Dunno if they're actively hirin', but it's a /good/ crowd. Like I said, I got a lotta friends an' family on the team. M'husband's actually one of 'em. In addition to the half-dozen other jobs he does, anyhow." He chuckles a little at the addition, then snags a pickle spear off of his plate to chew on. Oh hey...he already had a table of his own. She had completely missed that when walking through the doors before. "Well, it'd really depend on the level of signing up involved," Dom admits while switching out the drink for a spoon to idly stir at the bowl of chili next. (A fortress, really now...) "I'm more of a freelance sort, really. Don't do so well when tied down to just one project. At best I could help out with the odd job along the way, though the upshot is that the nature of the odd jobs isn't much of a concern. 'Things done, questions none' sorta deal. I already passed my info to this 'Iolaus' character a few days ago," she openly admits while taking a chance that they're all indeed talking about the same clinic. Right now it seems like a total sucker bet to her. With another blackened smirk, she adds, "At any rate, if you don't see me helping out with security then you're still likely to see me as a patient sooner or later." Pulling bullets out of herself does get old after a while. "I got no idea on the details, that'd be for Jane t'work out if y'all talk. I don't know anythin' 'bout no freelancin' or whatever. It's kinda an in-house staff." Micah nods, chewing a little faster to clear his mouth of pickle and smiling broadly before speaking. "Y'met Io? Dr. Saavedro's the guy who founded an' runs the place. An' he's a good guy on top of it. He...can be a little hard t'pin down. Even if he has your info. he might /forget/ unless he handed it right t'B. Guy really needs an assistant on him at all times." The nodding easily shifts into a headshake, instead. "See too many people I know comin' in as emergent patients. Guess I can't complain /too/ much, though. I was their first." His shoulders rise and fall in a 'what can you do?' kind of way. Oh hey, here's another familiar name... "Right to...B?" Domino asks, just to verify that she's hearing this right and isn't getting caught up with the peculiarities of Micah's speech. "As chance would have it I've also met B a few days ago, too. And Jax, because dollars to donuts you know that name too. Gees, I'm just getting all up in your collective orbits," she says with an amused grin, hooking an arm over the back of her chair to lean sideways upon it. "Fancy those odds." (Probably about 1 in 82,497..give or take.) Her amusement fades for a moment, replaced instead with another light frown. This matter also gets pushed aside with some amount of haste, shaking her head once then sampling the chili as if that's what she had in mind to do all along. "First patient, huh. That's both rough and some kinda cool. Plus you're still here, which is a good selling point." As soon as the spoon returns to the bowl her phone buzzes once in a pocket, prompting a swift retrieval and a glance at the screen. "Of course," she mutters. "This is why I usually grab a sandwich. Listen kiddo, I'm gonna have to be rude here. Thanks for the words." “B's his assistant. Ze also happens t'be another one of m'kids. Adopted,” this last Micah adds with a bit of a smirk, acknowledging her previous comment again. The mention of Jax stops his coffee on the way to his mouth. “Jax is m'husband, so, yes. I do know the name.” The amusement is bright and obvious in his hazel eyes. “We have a way of doin' that. B an' Jax both have a dozen jobs b'tween 'em an' Jax is an activist. So he's sorta out in things.” Finally getting that sip of coffee, his next reply is a silent nod until he's able to swallow it. “Still here. Always got that t'say. An' no worries...duty calls sometimes. If y'need a to-go container, they'll hook you up at the counter.” He stands as the woman starts to leave...old habits. “It was good meetin' you.” "Well no shit..." Domino softly remarks before openly chuckling. "So it's not a business circle I'm skirting around so much as a -family- circle. Glad I didn't piss any of you guys off yet or this might start to get really awkward." To-go containers, check. She'll do just that, thumbing up in Micah's direction as she hops out of her seat and starts to gather her two items. Then stops herself. (Networking, girl!) She pulls out a card, inked front and back like a domino playing piece with nothing else but a phone number printed upon one side. She flips it up between two fingers, makes eye contact, then sets it on the table for him. "Nice meetin' you too, M." "We're a pretty big family. An' some of us're a /lot/ harder t'piss off than others." This /also/ seems to amuse Micah a fair amount, that lopsided goofy grin returning to his features. At the appearance of a business card, he reaches into a pocket for one of his own. Much brighter: TARDIS-blue and covered in white writing reporting the company name 'Gorilla AT' over his own, 'Micah Zedner, MSOP, CPO, ATP'. Beneath is the expected series of e-mails, phone numbers, and a P.O. Box address. He quickly scribbles Jane O'Toole's name and business phone on the blank back side of the card, then trades his for hers. "M. That's very James Bond." Clearly there is approval for this nickname. "Have a good one."