Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 13:46:45 GMT -7
The warm, midday sunlight bathed the downtown area, baked the paving slabs, and brought to life the bustling traditional market which bumbled with activity. Traders exchanged their hard-earned goods for wads of money, often to small local businesses and families looking for fresh produce to cook with. The nature of the area set it apart from much of the rest of the city - such an amenity would not have gone amiss in an isolated old town. Were it not for the towering grey buildings behind it that betrayed its surroundings, Jersey may well have felt she had ventured too far.
In familiarising herself with the city that was now her new home, the tall, slender redhead had taken an off-duty stroll into the market, compelled by the level of noise and the curious setting in which it was placed. As she trawled through the rows of stalls, weaving through queues of people who waved their hands with wads of cash in bargaining, she browsed the various items for sale with mild curiosity. Occasionally, she would be drawn to the edge of a table to inspect the wares, before veering off whilst ignoring the yells of , "twenty percent off for you, lady,", or other attempts to draw in her custom. It was unusual for her that what drew her in the most was a somewhat tacky souvenir stall, displaying a range of "I ❤ EC" shirts, keyrings, and stuffed plush toys. While she wouldn't be caught dead purchasing, let alone owning, any of the above, she locked eyes with a pack of playing cards, enclosed in a shoddily made 'Emerald City' pack. Despite the poor quality, it only took the promise of a card game to render her sold. Raising her hand amongst the crowd of tourists who argued over the pricing of the shirts, she beckoned the attention of the vendor. "How much?" she enquired, gesturing to the pack of cards. Over the noise, he raised five fingers, and she quickly completed the transaction by placing down a five dollar bill and swiping the cards. Removing herself from the crowd as fast as she could, she wandered out of the centre of the market, clearly no longer interested in what the market had to over. Picking her way through in the direction of the docks, she eventually found her way over to a series of picnic benches which offered her the chance to sit down. Placing the pack of cards on the table, she pulled out a cigarette from her pocket and struck her lighter, enjoying a few moments of solace away from the overcrowding of the stalls.
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 13:54:22 GMT -7
As if by magic, Hope appeared at the woman's side on the bench, exhaling quickly and deeply, almost like a breath of relief as he took the seat. "You're a lot more approachable without two guns on you.". It would be evident to her that he'd just deactivated his power, but to most others, it would seem a trick of the light, or just a straight up hallucination; the strange phenomena in which your brain fails to focus on an object and sees straight through it. He picked up the deck of cards, looking them over for a second, holding them in his hands, before placing them back down.
"Meeting a date for a game of cards? How storybook.". He smirks cockily, clearly not that fazed about being around another super that he'd already worked out, without a proper introduction, was in the Rein Initiative. "You know, I do ask people not to use my tracker.". He stopped smirking, giving her an almost stern stare, unusual for someone who looked this youthful to be giving to someone who was clearly in their early-to-mid twenties. Regardless, he sat down comfortably, pulling a can of 'Black-Black' coffee from his jacket pocket. Strangely, he was dressed in his 'tactical' attire, the one familiar with his on-duty self. Opening the can in his hand, he took a sip.
He lowered his voice, looking down to the ground so as to not attract attention, though it was evidently still somewhat devil-may-care, as if he really didn't want to attract the visage of anyone nearby, he'd have simply activated his power whilst touching her. "So you're Rein... I worked out that much from your heroic appearance with snake-boy. And you're powered, because Ol' Shep wasn't with you. Mind explaining to me what that power is?". He looked at her. It wasn't as much of a demand as it came across, though Hope knew that she knew of his powers, and he expected her to grant him the same.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 14:24:24 GMT -7
It wasn't common for Jersey to be rendered shocked, but Hope's unexpected appearance had understandably done so. Stuffed underneath her jacket and muted by the noise of the crowd, the bleeping of the small pager attached to her waist had gone unnoticed. Gritting her teeth from the initial jump, she shot the youthful looking male a glare, clearly displeased to have been caught so off-guard. She was once again surprised as he launched straight into conversation, one brow subtly raised as she listened.
"You're a lot more approachable when I can fuckin' see you," she retorted, stuffing her hands into the front pockets of her shorts, "and nope, I just play a killer hand."
She traced his smirk, noting how quickly it fell as he moved to the topic of his tracker. "Only following orders, I guess they panicked when you started going all smoke and mirrors while off-duty." Shrugging, she swept the cards back in her direction, flipping open the top of the pack and pulling them out whilst he enquires about her powers. Her hands began to skillfully shuffle the deck, splitting the cards down the middle, then distributing then between one another with carefully placed but rapid cuts that would seem hard to follow without trained and familiar eyes. Without asking permission or whether or not he even wished to play, she dealt the pair two cards each, setting the deck in front of them. She raises her own hand to her face, leaning slightly away from Hope so as to obscure what she had from sight.
"Hit or stick?" she beckons the question prior to continuing, perhaps initially seeming to leave his own request unanswered. As she listens for his response, however, she continues on, "I can accelerate molecules. Does quite a lot, as you can imagine."
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 14:41:28 GMT -7
"Accelerating molecules? You some kinda' Accelerator? So can you like... Fire electrons or somethin'?". Despite the fact that Hope wasn't at all unintelligent, he was evidently playing dumb to find out more. He gently lifted his cards from the table, looking them over. A queen of clubs, and a seven of clubs. Seventeen. Blackjack wasn't an especially difficult game, and while Hope knew the rules, it was a game of chance, so he was no master. He sipped at his coffee once more.
"I'll stand. Seventeen's not bad.". He smirks, taking yet another sip of his coffee as he raps his fingertips against the cards on the table. "I hope this ain't for some kind of weird stakes. Not that you're not pretty...". Hope smirks even more widely than before, his cocky nature shining through as he mulled over the idea that even if this meeting went sour, he could slip away into the market and be gone in an instant, even without the usage of his power for an extended period of time.
His Deep South accent rang a strange and almost mysterious tone in Jersey's ear, quite the opposite to his shouting or even stranger yet, his singing voice. Finishing off the can of coffee in his hand, he crunched down the aluminium in his hand, and tossed it aside, a general lack of care towards the appeal of the aesthetics in the marketplace. It was generally messy after market day regardless.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 14:50:36 GMT -7
"Nothing that fancy," Jersey murmured through the cigarette that is clasped between her lips, "It's mostly down to tangibility of objects and people, and vibrations." She watched his play, obeying as he chose to stick with his hand as she flipped over her own. A total of fourteen, made up of a Jack and a Four. Not ideal, considering his excellent draw. Inhaling from the filter, but never removing the cigarette from her mouth, she blows a cloud of smoke and plays a third card. Once again, disappointing - an Ace.
At this point, frustration spreads quickly across Jersey's expression. Initially silent to his jesting, she draws a fourth card, swiftly rendering her bust with a Ten. "Bust," she mutters, snatching his hand and her own to fold them back into the deck, elaborately shuffling them to deal out once more.
"There's no stakes unless y'want them, but I don't know what we're betting. Certainly isn't what you're thinking." She eyes him up and down, exhaling yet another cloud of smoke as she places his cards face-up on the table. "But then, what are you, sixteen? I shouldn't be gambling with a minor."
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 14:59:47 GMT -7
Hope smirks as the woman takes in her initial loss to his superior hand, even going so far as to mutter childishly as she says the word 'bust', taking a brief look at her chest. "Damn right you have...". He seems taken aback at her insult, almost offended, but not for long; the smirk retakes his face as if it were meant to be there. "Minor? I'm goddamn twenty! 'Sides, given the incident yesterday; neither you nor I seem too intent on following the law of the land."
He looks over his cards. Both of the same suit once more. A five of diamonds and a four of diamonds. The deck hadn't been shuffled quite as well as he would have hoped, but he ran with it, tapping his fingers against the table to indicate that he desired another card. As she placed it down, luck would have it that she placed down an ace of diamonds; once again, rather close to the initial cards he'd been dealt, so further shuffling would be in order. "Twenty... Perfect.".
Hope seemed very pleased with his hand, content in the fact that there was almost no chance of him losing; and despite the fact that he'd been pushed into this game without being asked, or even giving his own consent, he'd be frustrating Jersey to no end by winning. He looked up at her, smirking slightly less so this time, emanating an air of confidence, no; overconfidence as he locked eyes with her. "Your play, J.". It was yet to be said whether the nickname he'd just bestowed upon her was affectionate, or mocking, but either way, it was Jersey's turn, and he seemed eager to see what she had in store.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 15:15:14 GMT -7
Jersey chuckled at his outburst, choosing to ignore the stolen glance at her chest - he certainly didn't appear twenty, and she personally thought her estimate had been well-placed. Youthful features did little to help him appear his age, and she was almost reluctant to take his word for it when he claimed he was twenty. "I wouldn't have been able to tell," she smirked to herself, flipping over the cards as he asked for them to be dealt. Narrowing her eyes at his twenty total, she bit at the inside of her lip, somewhere between nervousness and increasing irritability.
As he stuck with his cards, she turned her own over, reaching up to take her cigarette between her hands and take a final few draws on the filter. Long nails roll it between her fingers, the look of concentration on her face certainly unnecessary for a luck-based game like Blackjack. The Two-Three start was nothing impressive, but left her with plenty of room, particularly when the third card presented her with a flexible Six of Clubs. Drawing a fourth card, she tensed just before she flipped it over, teeth visibly digging in to her lower lip before she revealed the number. Landing a perfect twenty-one with the Jack of Spades, she shouted a loud and victorious, "Oh yes!" at her clean-cut win. Tossing her head, she gave the male a smirk and a wink, obnoxiously vocal personality shining through.
"What was that about stakes?" Jersey sweeps the cards up in a smug fashion, blending them back into the pack before she deals them out again, as before, "Especially since this could be a best of three."
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 15:29:21 GMT -7
He rolled his eyes as she made yet another remark at his youthful appearance. Noticing her very obvious tensing up at his rather formidable hand, he relaxed somewhat, only to be completely gobsmacked when she played the twenty-one. "Aw, c'mon... That's just not fair. Whatever happened to Lady Luck, huh?". He sighed somewhat, shrugging his shoulders as he looked at her, meeting her eye line yet again, pushing his cards back towards her for her to take.
With that, a tiny remark, a wink and a smirk was enough for Hope to be immediately out of his depth. Eyes widening, and mouth hanging agape, though only slightly, it took him more time than he'd like to have seen to regain his composure. It was doubtful that Jersey was genuinely flirting with him, but if she was, you're goddamn right he was taking it. "You put whatever stakes you like, J.". It was clear to all around that Hope was very much enjoying himself; if not for the entertainment of the card game, for the attractive woman sat next to him, acting the way she was.
"Let's hope you don't screw me this time.". It took all of Hope's composure to not continue that sentence with a follow-up, but he succeeded. Keeping himself out of trouble at this point was a priority, and flirting with a member of Rein? That was sure to be trouble. Then again... He took yet another look at her, eyeing her up and down far more subtly than before; though he couldn't bring himself to stop. She was well and truly, gorgeous. Blinking hard, Hope looked down to the cards he'd been dealt.
Nine of clubs, five of hearts. At least the deck seemed to have been shuffled correctly this time. A total of fourteen was risky. Hope looked to Jersey again, eyeing the cocky and overzealous nature of the flirtatious, voluptuous female. He tapped his fingers against the table. Six of diamonds. Hope once again had twenty. Maintaining eye contact, he smirked once more, the look had been all but written from his face after the previous internal conflict. "Twenty once again, J. What were those stakes again?". Forgoing what he'd tried to convince himself to do, in avoiding flirting with an obviously older woman, he winked, locking his eyes to hers.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 15:57:48 GMT -7
Hope's shocked reaction to her had not gone unnoticed, and only added to a growing smirk that she held on her lips. Her flirtatious nature had clearly caught him off guard, and his lingering looks were duly noted and remembered. For whatever reason she continued, it remained advantageous to her to continue, since it seemed to be winning her his favour - as it stood, she was very much on her own, and maintaining a good stance with someone like Hope was certainly in her interest. "I bet big, so be careful what you're getting yourself into." Once again, she cast him the same look, meeting his eyes with a slightly upturned chin and alluringly raised brows.
Stubbing out the cigarette on the top of the bench, she followed on with the draws of cards, setting his out while watching carefully. By the time they were laid, her teeth were firmly set into her lip again, brow creased intensely. Twenty was hard to beat once, let alone twice in a row. "Damn you," she breathed, flipping her own poor hand of seven and eight over, "You're not cheating, are you? Hiding some power of luck under your belt or somethin'?" Continuing on, she drew her own card, securing her own defeat with a four.
"Dealer's hand," she muttered, gathering the cards up again, "You win this time, Hope. Another round? If we're doing it, I want stakes, and you're choosing what they are."
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 16:09:44 GMT -7
Hope, once again, was left speechless for a second. This was rather uncommon to him; his brash and over-the-top nature normally rang true regardless of context. Her acting was not going unnoticed on him, and it certainly wasn't unsuccessful. Reveling only briefly in his victory, he spent far more time sipping at the air she exhumed, inebriated in the feel of it. "Y'almost had it.". As much as he tried to uphold his cockiness and confidence, as it was who he was, he was definitely struggling.
He felt it appropriate to respond to what she said, but with what? Stakes? This was not something he'd prepared for. He'd come to irritate her, possibly even affectionately intimidate her. After all, Hope was no villain, and he certainly wasn't a dangerous character to people like Jersey. "Ya' bet big, huh? Hm... Give me thirty seconds. I gotta get a drink.". Like that, Hope inhaled deeply, disappearing for a few seconds, into thin air; as she'd almost certainly wonder where he'd gone.
After a few seconds, her pager would begin to beep, ceasing again after fifteen or so, when he'd return with two cans of Black-Black coffee, one stacked atop the other. He'd push one towards her; and she'd likely recognise it. Black-Black. All caffeine, no flavour. A rather bold, bitter coffee with literally no creamer, sugar or any flavourings. Might not be to her taste, but it was the thought that counted. "Thought you might 'preciate a drink, y'know?".
He cleared his throat, before opening his can and taking a long sip. "So. Stakes...". Either the coffee had worked some kind of magic on him, or the brief escape from her tense glare had done the same. "Tell ya' what. I win this game... You gotta' come out for dinner with me. Pizza. It's my favourite; not that you didn't already know that from my run in with Monty Python.". He smirked, waiting for a reply as she dealt the cards. A nine of clubs and a ten of clubs. The shuffling still wasn't great, but hey; it was a new deck of cards, and it was working in his favour. "What'd'ya say, high-roller?". He smirked a final time, winking once more, as he left the cards where they were; nineteen - stand.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 16:29:42 GMT -7
Jersey had been caught somewhat off guard by his sudden disappearance into thin-air. Only her bleeping pager gave away his growing distance, a noise which she was now more aware of than she had been prior. As she glanced around, attempting to catch any sign of him, her brows furrowed in confusion. It was a bizarre power, so she had been informed by her superiors - the power not to turn invisible, but to essentially be rendered non-existent or imperceptible to the senses. It seemed to be something that few people understood - including her. What did beg the question was why he had felt the need to do so simply to grab a drink, but she presumed it was down to preference, and the ability to so freely use powers was something few would pass up.
When he returned with the coffee in hand, she felt unusually grateful; the extension of a gift was not something that she had ever particularly encountered, particularly so early on. A simple can of pre-mixed asian-style coffee rendered her to a seldom found state of unusual trust in Hope. "Huh, thank you," she cocked her head, inspecting the branding. It was one she'd come across before, but not one she'd ever had the fortune, or misfortune, to drink. It had never occurred to her to buy canned coffee. Nonetheless, she cracked it open and took a long sip. The bitter taste danced on the tip of her tongue, invoking a small wince at its distinct lack of sweetness and its bold, caffeinated taste. In spite of the look on her face, she actually somewhat enjoyed it - the challenge it offered her tastebuds was something she welcomed, much alike how an overly sour sweet was enjoyable.
Beginning to deal out the cards, she listened out for his offer of stakes, her brow raising inquisitively in response. "Dinner date, you say?" she purrs boldly and matter-of-factly, as if stating it 'as it is', "Fine, you got yourself a deal. But if I win, I get to choose the restaurant." Her stake in return was perhaps all the more surprising - instead of being a rejection of his offer, she secured it as a definite, giving him yet another sly wink which followed the turning of his cards. His nineteen finish was yet another excellent hand, and left her in poor stead as she drew an ace on top of her five and six. Another two cards left her stuck at seventeen, dealer's hand rules restricting her from going any further. "Dammit, yet again."
She does not hesitate to gather up the cards, shuffling them with rapid-moving hands - perhaps this quicker pace said something about her attitude towards the stakes. Either way, she had cheekily and flirtatiously set it in stone. As she deals out once more, turning his face-up, she leans over the table and in a way that quite intentionally flatters her sloping, lithe figure.
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 16:40:48 GMT -7
As she accepted the coffee, he looked for her reaction, clearly keen to see what she'd thought of his offering of something benign. As she thanked him, he responded in key; chirpily even. "S'alright! Just a coffee.". While it had never occurred to Jersey to buy canned coffee, it had also never occurred to Hope to buy canned coffee. The nature of his power meant that he could quite easily use deft movements in combination with a mysterious mental power, and swipe a coffee or two from the stands of the market, the shelves of a store, or the backroom of a restaurant. After all, it was only two cans; they likely wouldn't be missed.
He admired how her face contorted slightly at the taste of the coffee. He knew she'd find it incredibly bitter; he was surprised she found it palatable at all. Either way, he appreciated that she seemed to somewhat enjoy it, a mutual interest, even in something mundane was nice; a connection that extended behind the cocky flirtatiousness. Hope felt warm, odd, something he hadn't experienced in quite some time. As she dealt the cards, he began to listen to what she had to say.
"Sounds to me like either way, we're goin' on a date.". He smirked, winking once more as he took another sip of the bold black liquid contained within the can to his right. "Sounds good to me. Just no French food. Stuff scares me.". He takes the cards from the table, looking over them, but not before visibly, once again, gazing for far too long over her figure; it was her fault, she'd done that pose intentionally, and Hope knew it, but that didn't stop him enjoying it whatsoever. Staring almost, at her chest, then down further to her waist and legs, he didn't seem to care if she noticed at this point.
He looked at his cards. Four of clubs, two of clubs. Six. Damn. Maybe he wouldn't be getting the pizza party with the voluptuous woman he so desired. Instinctually, and without word, he tapped two fingers to the table. Jack of spades. He'd scored sixteen. A bastard of a number in the realm of blackjack. He didn't stand much of a chance of winning this hand. Goddamn it.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 17:01:24 GMT -7
Jersey paid particular attention to this game-changing hand, knowing full well that as soon as the stakes had been made, they could already be lost if he claimed victory. However, for the first time, Hope seemed to draw a particularly poor hand - the sixteen total left her leaning back, chest pushed intentionally outwards, with a smug smirk. Once again, she cast him a disarming wink, tongue poking out to be clasped by her front teeth in a particularly flirtatious look. At this point, Jersey was on an all-out offensive, perhaps too from the affects of the bitter coffee from which she sipped. "Wow, that date at the pizza place is looking further and further away.." her expression changed to an equally alluring pout, eyes rolling somewhat in the process.
As she turned over her own hand to expose a six and a four, her confidence visibly grew, leaning in closer to his face as she drew what would be the final card of her hand. Finishing off nicely with a Jack, she ended on twenty - cleanly winning the round. "And she does it again," she purred, sweeping up the cards and shuffling the deck, interspersing the cards between one another for another random draw, "You like mussels? I hear the French do them really well."
Her teasing tone extends to the visual as she deals out the cards, one leg folding over the other as she leans forwards, once again intentionally exposing her breast. Harmless, perhaps, but to anyone watching it would be painfully obvious, and perhaps slightly inappropriate for such a public place.
|
|
Rein Initiative
"Now you see me..."
Posts 62
Power Level 15
|
Post by Hope on Oct 24, 2016 17:19:45 GMT -7
Hope looked over the cards, but only briefly. Her flirting had once again not gone unnoticed by him, and he found himself once again drawn to her bust; and she'd only drawn a twenty. He looked up to her, locking eyes with her briefly once again. "Don't be so sure, J. I can practically smell my New Yorker from here.". Hope issued her yet another wink, and it would be increasingly obvious to anyone around that the two were flirting. A budding, yet somewhat awkward and unconventional Emerald City romance, or was Hope simply Jersey's plaything for the day? He didn't know, and for now, he didn't care. He was enjoying both games that were being played.
Hope drew his cards as she was already counting her chickens; naturally before they'd hatched. Hope had made that mistake several times in this meeting already, and she was about to do the same. Taking subtle glances up to her as she was pushing her cleavage towards him, he began to count the cards audibly. "Five, ace... Six, Sixteen...". He drew another card. Another ace followed. More security, he guessed; though another ace was always a double-edged sword. "Five, ace, ace. Seven, seventeen.". Hope realistically had no other option but to draw another card in the hope of beating her. She'd played unconventionally this time, and not really followed the dealer rules, by checking her own cards, but he didn't care. He was far too engrossed in her.
Tapping the table, Hope drew his final card, all the while, looking down to her legs and thighs; he was very much infatuated by her at this point, there was no changing that much. He spoke. "Five, ace, ace, four... Eleven, twenty-one. I win.". He bundled the cards together, and with a wink, pushed them towards her. "Looks like we're getting pizza after all.". He'd extend a hand for a handshake, only to take hers, turning it, gripping it somewhat tightly, though no more than pseudo-romantically; should she let him.
|
|
Rein Initiative
Posts 36
Power Level 15
|
Post by Jersey on Oct 24, 2016 17:32:55 GMT -7
Watching his hand inflate with numerous cards, Jersey felt increasingly pleased with how it was playing out - at such a poor start, being stuck with seventeen, she was certain that it was only going to end in her victory. However, in his surprise move of drawing yet another, he seemed to strike yet another excellent streak of luck, finishing off with a clean twenty-one. Feeling defeated, she gave him another pout, flipping over her own cards in the hope that it was a Blackjack - sadly not so, with the frustratingly close result of two tens. "Goddammit, nobody beats me at cards, even in luck."
Nonetheless, and perhaps unusually for her, she recovered quickly from her defeat, not allowing herself to be such a sore loser when all she had really done was lose her way into a free pizza with this curious and somehow intriguing male. "Pizza it is, you won fair and square." She thrust her own hand out, gripping it in a mutual handshake before she released and stretched out, parting her lips in a yawn. Long, slender, and incredibly toned, her desirable shape most apparent in this pose.
"So, when is this happening, hmm?" she enquired, pivotting on the bench to stretch her legs freely, no longer restricted under the table. At the same time, she leans back, propping herself up with her elbows as she grasps the filter of a second cigarette and lights it with a small 'Bic' lighter. Extending the pack towards Hope, she wordlessly offers him one should he smoke and should he take it.
|
|