How do I end up in the same place I was a few days ago, a place that sent me back home with a few more scars then I had before? Oh right, because its fun.

That thought was one among the many as Kyle drove his bike down the darkened roads and alleys that lined the darkest and most wicked place of New York city. The shadows hid the homeless, the small time drug dealers and petty thugs looking for that quick buck, the junkies and the whores. The small trash not even worth his time; his reason for being down here was for those that employed those small timers for a much bigger criminal enterprise, the head honchos. Crime bosses, big time players brought in by those kinds of people...or like his last visit here, mutants with an attitude and powers to match.

His last journey here, his first into this part of town since his arrival, had yielded a better catch then he'd even hoped to find. A woman by the name of Isabel, a woman with the looks to back her fiery personality. If Kyle had had the time to ponder it, he might have realized how attractive she was...but all he saw at the time was how powerful the Isabel was. Her ability had pushed him to his limits, in fact, he'd lost that fight more or less albeit by his own choice near the end to prevent either of them from dying for such petty reasons. At his request, she'd yielded a way to contact her before leaving and even though he doubted she'd meant it, his desire to face someone as strong as her again had overpowered that thought.

But that was not his reason for being down here today. He'd said he'd contact her in a week and he intended to do just that. For now though, he had returned to the darkness of the city in order to see what else he could find. The chances of finding a golden egg like Isabel had been was slim, his luck wasn't likely that good. But he'd settle with a good brawl or finding a way to a head honcho that he could knock off the streets for kicks. He'd done it enough over the years to have a decent feel for finding his way to those kind of guys, even more how some of their structures worked. In the absence of facing down a fellow mutant, that would suffice.

Behind his helmeted visor he studied the people wandering the streets, trying to pick the one with the body language that would set him or her apart from the rest. Mostly all he saw was the same weak trash that he could almost pity if he didn't know that most of them chose this kind of life. Those that didn't, well, he felt for them but knew that the only one's who could help them were themselves or others better suited to it then him.

Except for the woman walking down the street out of the corner of his eye. He'd only caught a glance of her, but it was enough for him to notice that she stood out compared to the rest of the riffraff her. Slowing his bike to the side of the road, he powered it off and glanced around for the woman, his eyes shifting from person to corner to shadow. They finally fell again on the same woman and making sure his bike was secure, hopped off his bike and started off in pursuit of her.

This woman stood out amongst all these slummers....and he wanted to know why.

Totally slumming it, the Order Leader had shucked her suit and french curl in favor of jeans and a light jacket. She even left her hair down. Today wasn't about business. Today was about making sure she didn't loose her connection with the streets.

Often, Lori ran her own errands. Posing as a lower level member of her own faction proved useful time and time again when people came asking for her. Since no one ever seemed to expect her at the head of things anyway, it made perfect sense to play into the collective expectation that someone more menacing would be Order Leader. That helped her move around freely and meant that she could keep tighter control of the Order's actions since she could see for herself how each level was performing on a day-to-day basis.

Today's errand consisted of a small package, clearly addressed in a neat handwriting. Just a little something for her to show her appreciation for the fine, upstanding gentlemen who had recently lost some friends in Order territory. She prepared her surprised eyes and knocked on an unmarked metal door. The eye slot slid open looked at her for about five seconds before slamming the opening shut again. Manners. Who needed 'em?

The door opened and she passed the package in. He tried to pull her in along with the parcel, but she let go in a hurry, flashed those over wide deer-in-the-headlights eyes and he grinned as she turned tail to run away all panicked like. She even threw in a girlish scream. For reality's sake.

The door slammed behind her and the moment she was sure nobody back there cared about the messenger anymore, the blonde resumed her leisure stroll. She didn't get over to this part of town much anymore. Maybe she should steal something for old time's sake?

By the time she had found the mouth of the alley way, tortured shouts echoed between the thin brick path between buildings. Coughing and gagging came next followed by silence.

She yawned to cover her smile.

Bum, bum, bum. Another one bites the dust.

The advantage of keeping his helmet on, even if it brought odd looks from the occasional passerby, was that Kyle could watch in mostly any direction that his side vision could see and make it look like he was still staring straight ahead. Sure, it cut off some of his ability to tell what is behind him or to the sides, but Kyle countered that easily enough by tilting his head side to side every now and then, as if looking at something in that direction instead. All the while, he kept the blond woman in sight, making sure to keep several people back in case she got paranoid in this part of turn and turned to look. Years of following a rat back to his nest did come in handy when needing to follow someone after all.

When the woman turned down an alley, Kyle slowed to a stop and decided, at least to others, to take a break and lean against the entrance to the alley itself. Waiting a few moments to let people pass by and for the woman to get a little into the alley, he finally turned his head slightly so that he could peer down the into that dark and dank street. The good thing about alleys was that while they were cluttered with various junk, spotting someone down one wasn't necessarily that hard. The woman was still walking down it, clear as dear even in the dim lighting the alley provided. Kyle was just in the process of making a move into the alley himself when she suddenly stopped, prompting him to lean back out of sight and continue the watch instead.

She had stopped in front of a metal door, unmarked by any signs that he could see. After a moment, the door swung open and someone inside took something that she pushed towards the open gateway. What caught his attention was that happened next; the woman suddenly withdrew from the door as hands reached out towards her and wasting little time, the woman bolted from the door, letting out a high pitched shriek of terror as she did. Instinct almost took him over there, tensing his muscles in anticipation to emerge from his location and strike down the people within the door. That would have happened, save for two points that stalled his instinct in favor of logic; no one chased after the woman and, after a moment or two, the woman slowed back to a simple walk without even looking to see if anyone was after her. Those points made him pause and ponder the situation in greater detail but one thing was clear; he was right about her being different from everyone else.

Leaned sideways with his arms crossed, Kyle watched as the woman came to the mouth of the alley, though his attention was distracted back down the alley when the sounds of people screaming started to come from the alley. A moment later, there was gagging and coughing and then...silence. Beneath his helmet, Kyle's eyebrow arched up, then he calmly turned his head back to watch the woman start to walk away. It was time to initiate contact.

Moving back into the moving crowd, Kyle carefully weaved his way along the side of the street, then overtook the woman carefully. Then, once he was sure he was far enough ahead to make things look normal, stopped to glance around, check something that appeared to be in his hand, then turned around when he spied her coming out of the corner of his eye. Timed so that he would bump right into her and done with just enough force that it would knock her back. Acting like he was surprised to do such a thing, he reached forward to prevent her from falling, while letting his voice bled through the helmet. "Oh my...my apologies Miss, I didn't see you coming there. I hope your not harmed.." The helmet muffled his voice a little and gave it a bit of a darker tone but it didn't cover the concern he was half faking.

Her errand complete, really all she had left to do was take the temperature of the seedy underbelly. How were things? Who scared them? What was the drug of choice this week? Any information she could gather would would be icing on this cake.

Except that a certain helmet head bonked into her. When 5 foot nothing ran into 5 foot 10, 5 foot nothing lost and bounced backward. When you add in the fact that 5 foot 10 had been moving forward...

She just about fell back on her butt. Her first reaction was anger, but he surprised her by catching her. Nobody on this side of town gave a flying flip who kissed pavement. Except helmet head.

And he talked to her through that helmet like that was normal. Maybe more normal here than anywhere else, but he sounded... off. His word choice was oddly formal, but not in a respectful kind of way. Just sort of archaic.

Lori held onto his arms and helped him to steady herself. Apparently, neither of them belonged here. "Uhm..." Her voice was girlishly high and nervous. "Y-You're going to laugh at me, but... you're not a vampire, right?" She rubbed her neck. Yeah. She'd met a vampire before and he hadn't taken a nibble or anything but he did talk all old time-y.

Maybe it was because the woman herself was small or that Kyle spent a fair amount of time training his body but when he reached over to keep her from falling, he admittedly almost stumbled himself. She was just so...light. When he pulled on her to try and counter her fall, he was able to pull her back so easily that he overexerted himself slightly, forcing him to take a few steps back to avoid falling over.

He kept holding her till she steadied herself, then dropped his arms back to avoid voiding what many consider personal space. Sure, he might have already done that but that was in the interest of correcting a mistake. At least, that's what his cover story for running into her was going to be. Folding his arms across his chest again, Kyle chuckled through his helmet at her question, though something about her tone was off to him. He hadn't figured her for the kind of person that would be nervous about being down here, not the way she walked. Something was off here...the only question was what.

"A vampire, hmmm? Well, as much as some ladies these days are into the whole vampire scene, I am not one of them." Shrugging his shoulders, he unfolded his arms and reached up to the base of his helmet, lifting it off in one deft move and shaking his black and red hair free. His eyes, slightly hard as they were, were also filled with an innocent curiosity as he smiled at her.

"As much as the night life is enjoyable, I don't think I could stand not enjoying the sun every day. That and blood..yea, doesn't do much for my tastes. Sorry about the helmet and if I startled you, that wasn't my intent. I'm not used to this place so I got a bit turned around.

Name's Kyle. Might I inquire as to who I almost knocked down so I can properly apologize for it?"

> "...Well, as much as some ladies these days are into the whole vampire scene, I am not one of them."

So he wasn't a lady? The Order Leader couldn't help but laugh, two or three quick little honest giggles which he hid behind her hand. He hadn't meant it like that, but how else was she supposed to take it?

And then he took off his helmet. He got points for long hair. Double points for the red. Triple points for the green eyes... She could just gobble him right up. Lori cleared her throat and straightened her hair with her fingers. This was her favorite game.

"Oh please, you couldn't scare me." She grinned with just enough teeth to make it a teasing statement rather than a challenge. "Not from around here, huh?" She would refrain from pointing out the trailer park a few blocks west where her father used to live. That wouldn't prove anything expect maybe how pathetic she could be.

And the more they talked, the more he loosened up. He dropped the formal speech, but did insist on an apology. "Yeah. No. Just... unexpected is all." She offered him her hand and a smile.

"I'm Lori." And the only rerason she went ahead and shook his hand was because he was wearing gloves. Once he proved to be a human (couldn't be adapted, she would have felt that) then she would gladly, gladly touch skin to skin.

It took Kyle a moment longer then it probably should have to figure out what she was giggling about but when he did, he felt his cheeks flush slightly at the thought of what his words might have implied. Shifting his helmet to rest under one arm, he absently scratched at the back of his head, chuckling lightly to himself.

"That came out a little weird...I mean ladies like the guys who play the brooding vamp and sadly I'm not one of the one's who enjoys playing someone I'm not for the sake of earning affection. If you're going to court someone, at least have the courage to do so with who you are."

He calmly nodded to her next words, letting his eyes study her carefully. From all angles, she seemed to be your average woman and a fairly attractive looking one at that. Why someone like her would wander down here, into what could be considered the worse place for anyone that knew how to shower to come threw ideas into his mind, but he kept them silent for now. He needed more proof before he could make any claim about her being here for any other reason then that odd delivery...but he could always ask about that later.

When she offered her hand, he took it and gave it a firm shake, smiling warmly when she spoke her name. Lori was it? How fitting a name. Releasing her hand, he placed that free hand on his hip and glanced around before turning his eyes back on her. "Well, its my pleasure to meet you Lori. Dare I ask what someone as beautiful as yourself is doing in a place where beauty appears to be a rarity?" Giving her a mischievous look, he leaned a bit closer to lower his voice a bit.

"Looking for trouble perhaps, hmmm?"

So he frowned at playing someone he was not in order to gain affection? She was wounded. Not really, but he was poo-pooing her favorite game. Not... that.. she ever, ever darted (not to mention "courting"). She just played with the people that she lied to. Used them up until they weren't any fun any more or until they realized their stash of cash went lower and lower each time she came over.

Lori hadn't played the game in a very long time. She hadn't needed the cash, still didn't need the cash. There was just something about that face that begged to be misled. And she wasn't even lying that much. Just playing...

"The brooding I can do without. Also, the blood sucking? That's really not on my kind of fun." Well. It could be depending.

And then with the flattery... Lori arched an eyebrow at him and his leaning-all-up-in-her-space. To the beauty remark, "I'd believe that if it didn't sound like a compliment you pass out daily." Her skepticism overflowed. "And who doesn't need a little trouble in their lives every now and again?" Hands went on hips. He could come as close as he liked, she wasn't budging.

Kyle raised an eyebrow at her frown, going over the words he'd spoken that might have elicited such a response. Did she perhaps actually like that "sparkly in the sunlight" garbage that made what a vampire was supposed to be into the spitting image of every fan girls dream about a man? Or perhaps denying her something from that topic had soured her spirit, though what that could possibly be eluded him. Without any real back up to his thoughts, all he could do was let the ideas come and go.

"Well, thats good to know. I'm not a very good brooder anyway. Too optimistic for that."

He hadn't expected his attempts at flattery to work, though in his case he was just stating honest opinions in a manner that he found enjoyable. After all, she was beautiful. She was in a place where about half of the occupants looked like they hadn't showered in years and some of them had funny colored teeth and therefore was out of place. And short of coming down here for a hit or to look for someone they knew, trouble was the only reason someone might come down here otherwise. Or maybe that was just him passing on his reason to another person.

"I speak honestly about the compliment. Sure, I admit it comes out now and then but I only hand it out when it truly fits. But if you'd prefer something not normally said, I could use exotic, fantastic or extraordinary before the beauty to spice it up a little." His smile had a hint of the mischief again, showing that he was teasing a little and mixing it with his honesty. "And true enough; my whole reason for coming into this place was to find a good trouble to kill my boredom. I'm just not quite sure if I've found it yet or if I have to dig a little deeper to find it instead."

Leaning back from her, he took a few steps to her side and titled his head in the direction they'd both come from. "Since I made the error of bumping into you, allow me to repay the deed. Simply ask for what shall suffice and I'll do my best to accomplish it..say, perhaps, a quick meal? I might not know a lot of places, but there is this one place down the street that serves a fierce set of dishes. If you don't mind a little trouble getting there that is."

But of course, his intention wasn't to take her to any food place...his location was only a short ways back. And there, hopefully, he would get the answers that were eluding his brain.

Awwww, man. Seriously? He started waxing poetic about beauty, specifically hers and alternate options for word choice. Really, she had NOT been fishing for compliments. She'd wanted him to stop.

In her book there was f***ability and everybody else. Yeah. She was downright f***able. But beauty? Beauty was like some completely foreign land full of inconsequential ideals and nobility and chivalry and crap.

She had a hard time not rolling her eyes. As for looking interested or like she believed him? Yeeeeah maybe next time.

"Lemmie just take a moment here. Give you a quick pointer, if I can?" Hands remained on hips. Eyebrows remained skeptical. Commence sass. "You can touch me, threaten me, hit me, kiss me, like me, lick me, roll me up in a carpet and leave me for dead. But give up on the flattery. For a guy who didn't want to pretend like what he's not, it makes you sound pretty unbelievable." It was for his own good really. Someone had to shut that down before it got out of hand.

And maybe she wasn't as out of place in these gutters as she looked. At least her attitude fit right in even if her clothes and face were a lot cleaner now.

A meal? There weren't restaurants where she would eat around here that weren't settled inside gas stations. Somehow, she didn't think this guy saw himself eating at a gas station. "What would suffice," she used his own words back at him and emphasized the oddity of their placement, "would be you not bulldozing the next blonde you see and attempting to trap her into a fierce set of dishes with you." And he had seemed like so much fun at first. Le sigh.

"Thanks for nothing, jerkwad!" This was said with such an intense smile and happiness that the word's tone likely overrode the content. 'Thanks maybe next time' seemed more like what should have been said in that cheery way.

She started walking away.

Hopefully the guy learned a thing or two.

Oh my, was she ever the little temper when set off. Her sudden barrage of "tips" as she said they were not only caught him completely by surprise but he had a hard time not bursting out into laughter. It actually took a considerable amount of effort to keep his face mirrored into a mask of shock and feigned hurt throughout her lecture and he kept it there for a few moments after until his grin finally managed to crease its way through his charade.

"Alright alright, you caught me. It was a bad approach, I know. But it told me two things about you." Lifting his index finger, then his middle finger to count the reasons, he calmly described what he'd learned. "First, your not the girl you came off as. The way you handled me in the beginning spoke that of someone who's shy; that lecture tells the complete opposite. That tells me your using a charade as well.

And second, there's not a hint of nervousness in the way you walk or talk; that speaks to tell me your either used to this place or used to being in charge. Your sure of yourself and for whatever reason that is, it makes you able to speak your mind without fear and walk down here without worry."

She blew back the rest of his request just as easily, though she said that last part with a smile on her face and a tone that bellied the context of what she was saying. Probably not the best choice of words she could have used with that kind of tone and expression, but hindsight was always fun to experience. With that last comment, she started walking away without sparing him a second glance. A dark grin slid across his features and she hadn't gone more then two steps before he flicked his finger to the side, sending a tiny bolt of energy into a nearby trash can, tipping it so that it crashed nearby, just off her side. She wouldn't have seen the bolt but hopefully the action would startle her.

"Well if that's how you want to play, then perhaps I should start with more serious questions instead of politely trying to be friendly beforehand. So let's start with the little stunt in the alley and then work our way back to who you really are. I would really like to avoid having to damage such a nice looking face, after all."

Not the girl she came off as? Duh. She had been trying to be nice and meek and girlish in the way that made men want to protect a girl. There weren't any heroes this side of town, but most people responded to cheer better that flat out snark. More flies with honey. More willing help with coercion? Something like that. It was just to grease the wheels.

Plus, meek could easily get sassy once meek got comfortable... or pissed. He was grasping at straws.

As for the used to this place or in charge? Both. And she would admit to neither. Seriously. Was it a crime to be confident? No. He could stuff it. And since he couldn't prove anything without doing something, she had to be prepared to take a hit and pretend it was all false bravado or crush him like an ant.

A trash can toppled in front of her. Oh. Big stinkin' coincidence[/i], Kyle. If that even was his real name. She stopped short and looked at it. It would be so easy to crush it. To fling it at him. No. She would take the high road.

"That desperate, huh?" What he was desperate for: a date or a fight, she left up to his imagination. The alley? They'd been talking in the street so that meant... damn. He'd been following her. Stalker much?

She turned around and smiled just as cheery as before. It wasn't like the trash can barred her way. It was more the fact that he'd done that. And he'd followed her. And he likely wouldn't stop until she took on in the face or she gave him fair turnabout. Oh an old fashioned slugfest. She could get down with that.

"My name is Lori. Like I told you." As for the face smashing, she would see if they would get that far. She stuffed her hands into her pockets, not that anything was in there, and wished she had at least bothered to wear her necklace. Maybe she was too confident here these days.

"Desperate, not really. Curious, most definitely. I mean, I come down here to look for some kind of trouble to kill boredom and what do I find? First its what simply appears to be a woman who does not match the decor down here, curious in its own right. Then she goes down an alley, sticks something through a door, lets out a random scream that to most would indicate she was in trouble but her switch back to a normal pace shows that was all an act.

And then not a moment later, something goes off and the sound of men coughing and gagging fills the alley, then the alley is completely silent again. Seeing as no one came out after you following that, I doubt those folks are in any condition to do something about what just happened. All of this adds up to something hidden beneath the surface and that's what is stroking my curiosity."

His face was still painted with an innocent smile, though his eyes were calculating and alert, trying to find any other seams with which he could dig into to find out more about the face behind the mask she had given. People wandered by, oblivious to the small stare down between him and Lori or seeing it and deciding it wasn't worth getting into the middle of that kind of encounter. It was probably the best choice any of them made in a long time; now if he could only get into a more open space with less people around, everything would be golden.

He matched her smile but didn't let his stance falter in the slightest. Cracking his fingers in his free hand, Kyle carefully started increasing the flow of energy into that hand. Not enough to make it visible but enough that if he needed to, he could release that energy in seconds. His body tensed slightly when she stuck her hands into her pockets, the thought of a concealed weapon rolling through his head. Still, he didn't let it show on his face.

"That, actually, I have no doubt about. What I meant was who the real Lori was really like. Am I going to get a better answer then that or should I just thrown down this helmet and get right to a battle of fisticuffs?"

He'd said it once before, but it was so stupid she'd thought it had been bravado. "You're really that bored? You're a mutant, right?" She nodded her head backward to indicate the trashcan without taking her eyes off of him. Telekinetic, gravity or something else she couldn't feel.

"Look, I know a guy who can boss you around if you want. Seriously. Put that talent to use." And she was sincere. Leather and whips and chains. He worked at The Whole 9 Yards S&M Club. Of course, she wanted him to make the intuitive leap that she was offering to have him meet her boss. That she was being bossed around.

As for the mess she'd left, that was for the cops to sort out. She wasn't about to go back and explain it to him when 1) it had nothing to do with him and 2) returning to the scene of the crime sounded about as brilliant as this doofus wanting to fight a stranger without knowing anything about him (or in this case her).

"Yooou're the super sleuth stalker. If you really wanted to figure out what was going on, you would have poked around first. You would have followed me for longer before a confrontation." Now that they were a bit further apart she let her eyes wander up and down his frame absorbing every detail. He wasn't hard on the eyes. "That's not why you're here."

And she was willing to bet that boredom wasn't an honest answer either, if she got down to it. He seemed nervous that this was happening in broad daylight. Well, nervous wasn't quite the right word for it. Uncomfortable, maybe. All she'd done was talk and keep her hands in her pockets.

The pieces fell together. Not everything, but enough. "You want to pick a fight." Well he had threatened fisticuffs. Chivalry was so dead, she'd glazed right over that one. Looking to prove something? Mommy issues maybe? If he was picking on women specifically, maybe, but with a sample size of one that hardly made for a pattern.

Lori glanced around at a downtrodden looking passerby. So tempting to snatch one up. How many of these were M users, she wondered? "Why?" Lori did not intend to fight. If she had her way after a couple minutes he'd be sobbing on her shoulder talking about a dead ex-girlfriend or something equally stupid that might drive a man to fight.

But he looked way too stubborn for that.

Whoops, looks like he wasn't as subtle about his powers are he'd thought he'd been. Logically, considering that he had been a few feet away from the trashcan that fell and that he'd timed his words almost perfectly after the can had fallen to impede her path, it didn't take a genius to put together that something he did had knocked it over. Sure, she likely had no idea what he had done, therefore had no way of being prepared for what his power was, but that meant he had to be a little more cautious.

"I'm really that bored. Probably comes from spending years with trouble but the simple day to day routines are a drag. And your right...I'm a mutant, through and through. Proud to be one too.

But then again, I have an odd feeling that your not so different. Call it a hunch. A baseless hunch but a hunch."

The offer of meeting someone who could boss him around was a little confusing, though he made a small connection between her words and their intending meaning. It almost sounded like she was offering to take him to someone that "was" in charge....her boss perhaps? It was a leap from the information she'd given him but after adding in the facts of the way she handled things, the leap wasn't as great. And the offer intrigued him, truly it did. But he needed to know more and be sure before he made any clear decision.

Her analysis of his intentions were actually more on the mark then he'd realized. If he HAD truly wanted to know what had happened in that alley, he would have followed her more to see where she headed to and barring that, say if he lost track of her, he could have investigated the scene itself to see what clues he could gather from there. The fact that he had moved on her too soon proved that his intentions, while good in nature in his mind, had actually been for one reason and one reason alone. That made him smile widely as the revelation came to light.

"Your right. Absolutely right. I did come down here with the intent to stop something bad but when it all boils down to it, my reason for coming here is simple. I came to find trouble and face trouble. In a way, I AM here to cure boredom...because dealing with trouble is a great way to do that. As for why...well...the best way one can determine his own place on the ladder is to test himself. I like to constantly test myself in this way because it allows me to be ready for when I truly need to be up to the task. Call it whatever you like but its how I've survived till now."

The nervousness in his body was gone; if it came down to it, he could clear these people out with a single blast. Not at them, mind you, but unleash his power and scare them away. Grinning, he lifted his arm up and cracked his fingers inward, then dared to let a small spark of energy course around his fingers. "Shall we get to those fisticuffs then? Unless your frightened of being spanked...little girl."