Restaurants were great places. Good food, good company, and many minds full of delicious secrets. The best part about eating out, or at least the part Vladimir enjoyed the most, was that most people had their guards down while they enjoyed themselves.

Sitting in the middle of a small and rather pleasant Italian restaurant, Vladimir was surrounded by laughing and talking people in good cheer. The weather outside was beautiful, the sun shining in onto his cup of coffee.

Having just finished a little lunch, Vladimir was enjoying his main course.Finding the juicy and sweet secrets that he could sink his teeth into and savor. It was much like looking for a girl to dance with, there might be some good ones out there, but every once in a while you might find a really nice one to take home to the parents.

Lost in his own mind Vladimir didn't notice the waitress walking up to refill his cup. Reaching for it the same time she did it was knocked off the table and shattered, spraying hot coffee all over peoples feet nearby.

"Oh im so sorry sir! please let me get a towel for you!"

Vladimir looked into her eyes and glared. What a way to ruin his good mood. Good thing he was about to be cheered up.

"Thats okay. But are you sure he is okay to?" He told her, looking far to deep into her eyes.

She looked puzzled for a moment and then worried. Glancing away she mumbled something about having to leave. Vladimir was mopping up the table absentmindedly with a napkin as he watched her go from calmly walking away, to frantically digging in her purse for her cell phone.

He didn't blame her, after all who can really trust babysitters now a days?

It was a slow day as Tses found herself having lunch in a small Italian restaurant. Spinning spaghetti around and around with her fork, she was in no rush to get anywhere fast. From a table in the back of the restaurant away from the windows, she sat by herself at ate her meal contentedly. The food was good, better than she expected, and she made a note to come back one day.

After a morning of pick-pocketing, she had managed to get a few bills and was using that to pay for the food. So she wasn't shy to enjoy her main course, and order a desert as well. Her mouth watered at the thought of the ice cream Sundae soon to come, but knew from experience the waitress would have to finish her rounds before returning with the next course.

However, the waitress never seemed to finish her rounds. Somewhere before desert arrived, Tses watched as the young girl went to refill a man's drink, and the cup went crashing to the floor with coffee splattering everywhere. Luckily, Tses was out of the rang of the drink's spray, although several other customers were not so lucky. Smirking into her cup, she watched the situation unfold, taking a drink of her cherry coke curiously. She expected some form of scene to unfold, one she could wash down with the taste of ice cream. She didn't expect what she watched.

The man glared at the girl, and she seemed to freeze for a moment. Tses couldn't see her face, but the man said something, then she glanced away, and mumbled as she headed for the back. The waitress seemed to have a mild look of panic on her face that was unfounded, at least from the small incident Tses had seen. And as she took another bite of her spaghetti, she grew oddly suspicious of the individual seated but a few tables away. She couldn't place what had happened, but from experience, with mutants in the world, anything could have transpired. Mind control, telepathy, some mental electrical surge of pain... She started trying to deduce possible scenarios, and different customers glanced around for their missing waitress.

The main course had arrived, and it was delicious. Sometimes the surprise victims were the most fun. This one might not have been one Vladimir would have chosen first, but now that he had her he might as well finish his meal.

He watched as the waitress dug for her phone, counting the seconds. Right before she put it up to her ear she noticed the present outside the diner waiting for her. It was her ex-husband. Standing there with her son beside him. Her ex-husband was disheveled and had deep bags under his eyes.He was wearing a dirty jacket and, by the looks of it, was holding something inside the pocket that looked right about the size of a gun. It was touching the young boys side, as if a warning.

He knew this would set her off. Ever since their terrible divorce he had been threatening to find her someday. A simple fear, the mother's fear of losing their children, yet such a delicious spice, a insane ex out to ruin her life. What were the odds? Her biggest fear was him finding out they had a son! Vladimir chuckled aloud to himself.

Vladimir's eyes became red as the vision yanked the child by the scruff of his shirt out of sight. The waitress wailed a terror shriek and burst out of the restaurant and out of sight, running after her fear. Vladimir knew that once out of his vision the image would linger for maybe a split second, but it was enough for him. He had been impressed she ran towards it, usually they run away or don't move at all.

The restaurant buzzed with whispered conversation. The day manager went to peek outside down the street. Vladimir had no idea if the waitress was still there or not, who knows what a mother would do just now. He assumed perhaps she kept running despite the vision vanishing, she might run all the way home and barge in on her son perfectly fine, wondering why she saw what she saw. Vladimir wished he could be there.

With a sigh he returned to his coffee. Might as well finish it off before he left, not caring if the waitress would come back or not. He wouldn't mess with her again though, it wouldn't be as fun.


A surprise dinner loses it's charm after the surprise wears off.

From her little corner of the restaurant, Tses watched the scene unfold. The nurse, already unsettled by something, took one look out the window and promptly screamed in terror. Tses jumped slightly in surprise, the noise sending the hairs on her neck on end. It was like watching someone react to a tragic car accident, but there was nothing out the window she thought could spark that reaction. While most people watched the girl run out of the restaurant, however, Tses still had her eyes focused on the man who last spoke with the girl, and she didn't miss the small red glimmer that seemed to pass his irises.

Mutant.

Tses pushed a meatball across her plate, and tried to decide an appropriate action. There was the direct approach: throw one of her explosive orbs in his coffee and watch it blow up in his face. There was the childish: throw a noodle across the restaurant and make an 'I'm watching you gesture'. Yet, she decided to settle on the indirect for now. The man appeared to be finished eating, and rather than confront him here in the restaurant, she decided to approach him when he went to leave. After all, he did take away her chance of getting that ice cream sundae. But her gaze was forceful on him from where she was sitting, and the glare she gave him was a 'I saw that' sign from her piercing blue eyes.

The coffee was great, the food was great, and the entertainment proved to be astoundingly grand. Vladimir was already making plans for his next trip here, this restaurant was 5 stars. Drinking the last of his drink he decided the bill was on the house as he got up to leave, what else could make this day any better besides a free lunch after all?

But as he turned to leave he caught the eye of a woman who was looking at him with a strange expression. Her glare and demeanor wasn't friendly, making Vladimir pause. On rare occasions he had been caught before, some exceptional people have either somehow worked it out or they were mutants who could sense these things, either way he had a hunch she knew.

Either way Vladimir didn't mind, he doubted anyone would make a scene, few ever did. Just for laughs he winked at her and looked far to deep into her eyes.

She found his secret, might as well be mutual.

Tses watched the mutant finish his food, and prepared to follow him. But at the last minute, he looked at her, and the eye contact said everything. She knew what he did, and he knew that she knew. He winked, and little did she know, he reached in her and found her deepest fears....

To feel alone....

The first fear shaped itself as a small child, wandering the streets of a large city in the cold. Snowflakes were falling, and she shivered with cold, eyes glancing everywhere for shelter. The other street kids were hidden away in makeshift shelters, or surrendered their pride and went to the soup kitchens. She had nowhere to go, and desperately wished she was home with her little sister. As she went to cross a street, a passing car splashed her with cold water and she cried out, water running down her left side. Tears welled in her eyes, and she fell to her knees in the snow, crying and shaking with fear. She was alone, and no one noticed her tiny form crying on the sidewalk. She was alone, and no one cared, no one even noticed she was there....

To feel helpless....

The second fear took the form of a slightly older girl running through the streets of town. Her long hair was strung behind her, and she was looking desperately for somewhere to run to. Turning down a street, she saw a fire escape on one of the buildings, and made a jump for it. The first attempt didn't make it, but another leap and she caught the bottom of the ladder. She tried to pull herself up but the figure behind her caught the end of her blonde hair and yanked her back. She fell to the ground with a thud, and rolled over, fear filling her eyes. A shoe came down on her back, pinning her to the ground, and she flailed, helpless and unable to get away...

The emotions seemed to flicker somewhere in the back of her mind, just beyond her reach, and her expression stayed firm, a contrast to the worries in her head. She looked strong and independent, a powerful female with a headstrong attitude. But one look inside her head, and it was clear she was more than the hard shell she held on the surface.

Finding the deeply hidden secrets of others was one thing, utilizing them was another. Vladimir had a large amount of experience doing both, not to mention it gave him great pleasure. Nothing compared to it, it was a fine wine only he could taste. Seeing the woman before him and knowing her fears, Vladimir wanted nothing more than to share his good day with her. However he didn't think it was prudent to make such a scene in one location. Two people in one setting, it could draw to much attention. It's happened before and it didn't end well.

Of course only she knew, or suspected, as far as Vladimir knew no one else had the faintest idea of what caused the server's reaction. He might be able to get away with it, so long as he was careful.
Luring somebody was difficult, there was to many variables to it, but Vladimir didn't want this one to slip by. He felt great today though, so he decided to be a little bold.

Sitting down at her table he gave her a friendly smile.

“ I hope I am not being overly intruding, but I couldn't help but notice you were sitting alone. Not to mention the look on your face seemed inviting, I mean, you couldn't keep your eyes off me.”

He readied himself, he was very curious to hear how she would reply but at the same time was ready to use his powers at a moments notice. Vladimir gave himself a mental pat on the back, using the word 'alone' there, and sitting down without a actual invitation, he was already off to a good start.

The general feelings of dread would sink in first, followed by feeling helpless due to her fears, which then would tie into physical illusions quite nicely. Vladimir sat there, trying to look as friendly and non-threatening as possible, all the while thinking up some fun things to spawn that were tied to being alone. He wouldn't use his power quite yet, but he still had time.

It might not be the best idea to cause to much of a scene but if she knew so much about him already he might as well teach her the rest given the chance.

Tses had met a few gutsy guys in her day, but this was definitely a first for her. The figure she was watching so suspiciously had made his way over to her table, and took the seat opposite of her with what she supposed was a friendly smile, but she didn't return it. She sized him up, from his unkempt black hair to his sort of arrogant swagger, and her lips pursed into a frown. She didn't like people inviting themselves to sit with her, and especially didn't want that behavior from someone she would rather intimidate. She swiped a blond bang out of her face and behind her ear, and wrapped her fingers around her cup giving him what bordered on a glare.

"Well, I didn't invite you to come over, and I'm sorry you mistook my suspicious glare for being inviting. I've seen mutants like you playing games with people, and I find it a petty and childish display." She took a sip of her lemonade, blue eyes glittering with irritation. She didn't have a big problem with him to start with, but his actions were starting to get on her nerves. In the back of her mind, his last word played over in her head, and she tried to shake it loose. I couldn't help but notice you were sitting alone.[/color] For some reason, she couldn't shake it loose, and it felt like something burrowing against her brain. Alone. Alone. Alone. Alone. So what if she was alone? she always sat alone? What did it matter, she didn't like people anyway.

"Besides, I like my space, and you're currently intruding in it." This last sentence had a low growl to it, and a warning nature. By all outward signs, she wanted nothing to do with him, and it backed up her claim. She was quick enough to know something he'd done to the girl terrified her, but there was no way she could piece together exactly what this kids powers were. She needed to tread carefully, but that was something difficult for her to manage. She fought in a 'punch first, ask questions later' method, and if nothing her meal had made her complacent enough to wait for now and get a better idea of what she was dealing with.

Vladimir chuckled at the girl's response. He decided she must be quite brave to challenge a stranger that way, especially when they knew he was a mutant but didn't know the details of what he could do. She also handled his aggressiveness in a fun way, she could handle herself. Vladimir found himself respecting this woman more and more. It would make it all the more fun to see if he could tear down that brave wall and see what was behind it.

His eyes changed to their red hue. She had noticed from across the room, she would surely notice now, but Vladimir wanted her to after all. It's true humans fear what they don't know, but they have to be aware of it first. He willed her to feel worried, unseated, she would feel a illogical creeping feeling of emptiness, like she was the only one in the room. Maybe even the city. The noise from the other customers and the street outside would become muffled, but they would return if she focused on them. It all added to the feeling that they were leaving.

But this wouldn't be enough Vladimir decided. How could he incorporate loneliness and helplessness into one illusion? He could build on it more later sure, add things here and there maybe, but he never gave lazy gifts. He always liked giving something personal, something a person could hold close to their heart.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, but the display was only for me. If you want to be left alone though, I will leave."

Vladimir blinked, his eyes turned back to normal, but that was also part of the illusion.

Tses sensed something was wrong, but couldn't quite pinpoint what. As his eyes turned red, she felt something unpleasant building her her chest, a dark fear; an unpleasant trepidation. She was staring at the red irises, trying to quiet her worries, but the way her fears mingled left her twisted in the wake. It was like dropping an egg into the pan before you were ready, and trying to scoop out the yolk before it was too late. If you were careful enough, you could manage it. But one wrong step and it would break, bleeding yellow across the pan.

Right now, things were breaking.

The fear was unfounded, but realistic enough for her it was hard to escape. She was sitting in a chair, and around her, no one seemed to notice. People moved on with their meals, but they were... drifting away. She felt like everything in the corner of her eye was blurring out, sinking towards emptiness, and when she tried to glance at them, there was no one there. She felt worried, but kept her face straight. She could still hear their noises, and still here the street outside, however distantly. She tried to hold onto that sound, forcing it to calm her pulse and keep her head on straight. She wasn't alone. She was sitting right here, with this man who was doing something to make her think she was. She was fine.

Then, that word drifted into the conversation again. Alone. She hated that word, she hated the connotations it had, and she hated how he kept using it. Her gaze, rather than going fearful and rabbit eyed like the waitress, grew intense, and she glared at him with a set jaw; in fight or flight, she preferred fight.

"Perhaps I enjoy being alone." She said coldly back to him. She was challenging him, and inwardly, the fear whispered against it. She didn't want to be alone. She didn't like sitting here by herself, a solitary figure in a crowd. But she wanted to be away from him. How could she convince the fear in her gut to let her leave, when it was looking around like a terrified animal for something tangible to hold onto.

Vladimir was happy his day was turning out to be so interesting. The feelings of worry and lonliness must be taking their toll on the girl by now, she would be feeling quite out of place, hopefully it would get worse. However Vladimir did feel some respect for the girl, she was being brave in the face of a strange and new situation. A trait Vladimir respected and rarely was seen in most people, he decided that it didn't matter to him if she fell for his tricks. If she beat them and escaped, he would feel nothing but admiration. A strong will is a very coveted trait, one Vladimir enjoyed seeing.

Either way it was time for the final twist. Whether or not she became terrified, or if his plan failed, Vladimir would in fact leave the girl alone if that was what she wished. She had earned that right, not that it was ever Vladimir's position to judge, that was something he took upon himself as a game.

Vladimir's eyes had returned to normal, but that was only part of his fun. Feeling powerless meant one must be aware of the situation, enough to realise they cannot control it. She would have surely noticed his eyes truning red when the feelings of fear first started, but now that they seemed to be normal again, and the feelings did not leave, the fear could only intensify. Or not, Vladimir was only but one player in this game.

“Fine, alone you shall be.”
He muttered before activating his last illusions. Vladimir stood up from the table and created the illusion of himself. Stepping back behind his illusion, he willed that he be unseen as he backed out of the restaurant, as well as the edges and sounds of the surrounding people be further erased and dulled. At the outlying fields of the girl's vision, people that were never present at the restaurant, yet looked as if they were simply sitting behind her or to the side, started leaving quickly.

This was the illusion Vladimir chose, the illusion being that Vladimir had not left at all, he was just outside looking in, yet what could be perceived was that he had not left. Her words had not worked, she asked him to leave and he said he would, but didn't. If she were to try to make him leave, it would be in vain, since he was not there.

Simple yet effective, an illusion that grew in fear the more you fought it.

One of the hardest things to escape was yourself, and all the linger doubts inside your head. Tses knew this, better than most people, because she lived a life of solitude, and woke up every day to face it. From snowy rooftops, to empty streets, she wandered like a ghost among the world and tried to survive. But at the end of the day, one of her biggest struggles was always in that dark little place in her mind where she suffered alone. Sitting watching families down the street, trying to convince herself it was for the better when she wanted something different. The trouble with her fear, was Tses always battled it, so even watching the mutant and having the terror rising inside her, she managed to keep her face mostly calm, and glared back at the other mutant. While she rarely looked people in the eyes, this was a statement of strength, and an attempt to prove she was not his to control and take advantage of.

Yet, somewhere in her icy blues, the emotions kept surfacing.

His eyes weren't glowing, and she felt herself starting to question the reality of her terror. Was he causing it? Was it her own? Was he manipulating her, or was she really just this weak? Doubts rolled through her mind, and they kept mingling and dangling through her thought waves as the illusions kept building. People were moving, leaving... he was leaving, but staying.... It made no sense, but it was a warped distorted workings of her inner mind. For some reason, the last image was the hardest to accept. There was the stranger, just outside the window, staring at her, watching her. Like a ghost from the past she tried to scare away, he kept staring... kept looking....

"Go...." She snarled low under her breathe, her glare sharpening on the figure she felt she saw. Her anger started to overlap her feelings of fear, a protective shield wrapping around her mind. She tried to push past this game, tried to shake his illusions away, a small trickle of green light flickering ever so slightly across her palm. The other customers would not have noticed it, but if he was looking close enough, he may have.

Vladimir had terrorized countless people, he had done it so many times he could feel how scared a person was, and how well his illusion was holding up. The better it worked, the easier and bigger he could expand upon it. Usually, a person was hardest to deal with at the very beginning, and once they gave into their fear it became painfully easy. This time however things had changed.

He could sense the girl's fear turning into righteous rage. Anger didn't defeat the emotion of fear completely, but it did hold it back long enough for a person to collect themselves and strike back. She had glanced outside, Vladimir knew part of his last illusion had failed. She was still being effected, but it wouldn't last long now, she would defeat them very soon. The admiration of the girl's character Vladimir held only grew from this fact, so many people had helplessly drowned in their inner demons, so easily that most of the time Vladimir felt all he did was give them a small nudge before they snapped. But this girl, this girl was fighting it well, and would win given time. Vladimir ran through his options and knew none would be good enough to stay this flow of anger. Just the opposite, it was far more likely that creating more illusions would make her anger worse, at least that was Vladimir's assumption.

Vladimir smiled to himself. Maybe his current fear-scape could hold her attention long enough for him to leave. It usually could, but this girl was quite possibly a mutant herself. She obviously had more fight in her than most already, there was no telling what she could do. Vladimir wasn't scared, but he certainly didn't want his great morning to turn sour.

Fate had other plans for him though, just before Vladimir was going to end his influence over the girl, the previous victim reappeared on the street. The waitress had finally calmed down and was returning to work, angry and very confused when she saw Vladimir.

“You!!” She exclaimed to him, “I don't know what you did but I KNOW it was you!!”

He turned to face her, which immediately ended his illusion over the strong girl. He wasn't focused enough to deal with both forming his fear and avoiding this angry waitress.

This sunny and happy day had a rain cloud on the horizon.

As the anger grew stronger, it tainted her fear like mud in water. It started on the edges of her thoughts, then traveled steadily towards the center of her focus. Her inner turmoil grew more directed, and she longed to strike back. All the needed was more fuel for the fire, to turn it into a smothering blaze. But then, something happened, and it was like pushing against a door only to have it fall open. She emotionally tumbled forward, released from the illusions, and tried to make sense of her surroundings.

There was the stranger, facing an angry waitress, the same one he had tormented moments before, just outside the window. Close enough to go after, but too far to get to immediately. Tses, with her fear now subsided, was left with nothing but uncontrolled rage, and that propelled her forward to reach the target of her anger. It only took a moment before she was up and on her feet, arms suddenly rippling with glowing green energy. It didn't do much directly, but as the light caught the attention of some of the other customers, it did enough in the long run. People stood, and started scooting away, while a few staff members made as if to move to the back. Balling her hands into fists, she scrambled towards the door leaving a wake of rattled humans behind her.

In the cold outside, she prowled at the figure now in the cross-hairs of her vision. Disregarding the other angry female, she growled at him in fury.

"Don't you EVER mess with my head again!" She snarled, and her muscles coiled, readying to attack. The problem with Tses was she was always afraid: even when he let go, her mind still lingered with her own doubts and problems; but she learned to deal with it by turning it into anger, and that was her strength. Right now, she wanted HIM to feel fear, and wanted that fear to be of her.