ArchivedLogs:The Newbie

The Newbie
Dramatis Personae Katheryn Pryde, Marinov, Paige
In Absentia	2017-01-22 "It's by Shane."
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 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. It is Saturday afternoon, approximately 4pm in the afternoon, and Marinov has arrived at Evolve with a few of their books. Not that the teen actually intends on reading any of them today, as they post on their social media: 'Heading for tea and snacks at #Evolve. It's going to be an explosion of fun!' Their expression does not betray any of this fun having, and they approach the front counter to place an order, explaining to Kitty, "This is the best place in the city for a mutant to get some tea, or coffee if you're into that sorta thing, or really anything. So long as it's currently open." They adjust the pink bow they wear around their neck over the white dress shirt. The teen also wears a relatively short plaid skirt and some knee high boots. "It's one of the few genuinely welcoming places in the city, plus Shane's the owner, and he's the coolest." Kitty says incredulously, "Shane as in Mr. Holland? He's all over the place." She straightens her novelty shirt and jeans self-consciously given how bland she looks and how fabulous Marinov looks. She turns to the clerk, "May I have an oolong tea, please?" She looks back at Marinov and says, "I guess I'm not used to 'the community' being so small, but I guess it is." Wearing a black cardigan over a long-sleeved black shirt, Paige is hunched forwards as she sits on one of the sofas in the back corner. Her hands nurse a cup of coffee and it seems she has been here a while. Her eyes dart over each person in the cafe, briefly scanning each one of them as she awaits the arrival of her friend. When she catches sight of Marinov, her ears flick upwards in recognition and she raises a hand to wave at them. Marinov places their order for black tea, then laughs at Kitty's words. "Yeah, that's probably why I think he's cool, 'cause he seems to always have all kinds of cool shit going on. He's helping me with a project that I'm working on, too. Top secret!" It's no secret that Marinov is working on an arts show with a focus on showcasing obvious mutant artists, and has enlisted help around the school where possible. The teen's phone buzzes when on Facebook, 'Rebecca Marinov' replies to their Facebook: 'I don't like when you make jokes like that! You make me worry.' They glance towards the screen a moment and offer only a chuckle and an eyeroll before tucking the device away in their bag. The teen looks up towards Paige, and explains to Kitty while waving in return to their friend, "Oh! That's Paige, a friend of mine. She's cool." They start off in Paige's direction. Kitty looks at Marinov 's reaction to their phone, and looks concerned for a moment but if fades when they chuckle. She looks over at Paige and smiles enthusiastically and waves. She walks over to the sofa and takes a seat at a respectful distance from her new friend. "Hi, I'm Kitty Pryde. Marinov's been showing me around the City this weekend." Kitty extends her hand in a very masculine manner to shake Paige's hand. Paige is silent as the teens approach, but when Kitty sits down and extends her hands, she sets her cup of coffee down quickly on the table. "Oh!" Wiping her hands on her jeans to remove any condensation, she accepts the offered handshake and smiles softly. "I'm -- uh -- I'm Paige. It's a pleasure to meet you." It may be noted that the back of her hand is covered in a short layer of soft fur. "Marinov has shown me a lot of things around the city, too. They're, uh, a really good friend of mine." Marinov chuckles and says, "I admit that I'm a lot more familiar with Seattle, but I've been trying to explore the city since I got here. Doing the whole, you know, free running thing." They flop down into one of the available seats and say, "I was supposed to do that introduction, wasn't I? Shoot, missed the boat there." They explain to Paige, "Kitty goes to school with me. Which you probably coulda guessed." "I guess I was a little forward," Kitty says bashfully, "I'm just a bit excited to see how other mutants live." She raises her hands quickly in a surrendering gesture. "I'm not going to interview you, or ask for sophomore lecture in mutie life, or anything. Xavier's is great, but it's a little isolated. My home city of Chicago," Kitty sighs, "well the mutant community is pretty underground." Paige looks a little confused as she regards Marinov, but then shakes her head. "No, I didn't guess, but I suppose that makes sense and all." Her ears then flick up as her attention returns to Kitty. "Forward? I don't--I don't think so? And, um, you can interview me if you want, but I'm rather new to being a mutant." A hand reaches behind and rubs at the back of her neck and an inquisitive expression is given to the girl. "Do you mean mutants live in the sewers there? I've, uh, never been to Chicago." Marinov shrugs and says, "Yea, I'd probably be on the down-low about the whole mutant thing if I could. But... the mutant community here is at least a little more visible compared to most places." Their eyes flick towards Paige at her words about the mutants living in the sewers, "I... think I'd be surprised if there were many mutants in the sewers of Chicago, but who knows." Kitty laughs "No, I don't think that anyone, no matter how desperate, would live in Chicago sewers. They're old, and starting to flow in the wrong direction." She stops chuckling, and knits her brows, "Are you saying that there are mutants living in the NYC sewers? I thought that was an urban legend, and something that the upperclassmen at Xavier's say to mess with the newbies." Kitty says, "I think our drinks are up, I'll get them," and she heads over to the bar. Ears flicking up, Paige shoots a glance to Marinov at Kitty's words. As the other girl gets up to go to the counter, she addresses her friend. "Do they say that? Are there really mutants living in the sewers here?" Then her eyes narrow a bit. "Why didn't you tell me? I could have..." She releases a sigh and bows her head, hands reaching up to stroke her horns. "Did I tell you Heather told me she was going to get us a place at the Commons? Her and I, I mean. I really don't understand why she would want to live with me." Her arms lower to rest in her lap and she raises her eyes to look at Marinov again. "So - Kitty - is she a new friend?" "I mean, I dunno if there actually are mutants living in the sewers, but yeah, I've heard... rumours. Same as you, really," says Marinov, shaking their head, "And you didn't tell me. I think it'll be good for you to be back in the Commons. You really seemed to like it there. And Kitty's a classmate, yeah, a new friend I guess. Only got to school this last semester." They glance off in Kitty's direction, "She's a lot smarter than I am, that's for sure." Kitty gets to the bar, picks up her drink and poses for a selfie to send to her moms. When she sees her two friends in the background, she realizes that she doesn't have Paige or Marinov's permission to take or share their photos. <<rude to keep Mari waiting anyway>> She picks up the mismatched mugs of tea and smiles at the little piece of home. Her mothers attended so many rallies and marches and benefits that they had mugs and glasses of any shape and size but each other. She stands, lost in thought and more than a little homesickness before snapping back to the present and bringing the tea back to her group's little corner of the cafe. Paige's posture straightens as she nods at Marinov's explanation of who Kitty is. "She seems very nice!" The older mutant remarks with sincerity. "And if she's smarter than you, she's -definitely- smarter than me. I'm glad to hear you're making new friends and I'm not taking you away from -all- that high school has to offer," she says with a small grin. She at least seems to be doing better than when the two friends last met. "Welcome back!" This, to Kitty upon her return. "Well... I think you might be overestimating my smartness, Paige," says Marinov with a chuckle, not seeming too concerned about it, "And yea, it's hard not to get to know folks there, it doesn't exactly have a ton of students." When Kitty returns, they hold out their hands, which are somewhere between between human hands and a paw-like structure, to grasp their cup. "Spasibo Kitty! I appreciate it. So, what do you think of the place? First impressions?" Kitty looks around at the well-lit cafe, and takes a deep breath in through her nose. She says, “it’s airy, very SoHo-slash-industrial. Places like this in Chicago usually charge you $12 for a cup of hot leaf juice.” She sits down next to Paige again, sets her cup down and stretches. “How does a small cafe like this stay open with everything that happens? Is it by will alone?” After taking a sip of her coffee and placing the mug gently on the table, Paige leans back a bit. "It's by Shane. And everyone else. Taylor, for instance." An inclination of the head is made towards the counter, whether or not the barista in question is actually on-duty today. "Ravenna, too." This is said as she sits up again, ears flicking. "But I don't really know her. I think you--" The goat girl looks to Marinov. "-- said Flicker repaired the glass and made it bullet-proof or something? There's also a lot of 'paying it forward'. I don't--well, I don't really pay all of the time. Like right now since I, you know, don't have any money." "Well, I mean, yeah... a lot of it is probably perseverance, but I dunno, I don't know what the books look like or anything," says Marinov, gaze drifting upwards in thought. "But... they're also serving a community that's sorta underserved, so I'm guessing they get pretty consistent business that way at least. Even if some people would rather see it shut down." They show their teeth in a grimace, before quickly checking themselves. They add, "But the whole Evolympics thing was a fundraiser to get this place back off the ground, and I think it was enough of a success they probably still have some money in the war chest."