What was it? <Nothing.> He supplied, just a little too quickly. <Nothing at all.> It probably looked more like a beeper than anything else. That or maybe an mp3 player too fancy to have anything more than a text screen and a single button.

A small bead of sweat formed at Jude's temple. Because it was hot. And he was nervous about lying. He hoped she would think he was nervous because it was something, which it was. But he actually wanted her to tinker with it and trip the X-men call. So of course he had to act like he didn't want her to.

Lies were complicated like that.

Jude took a step closer, but stopped short when with the girl casually shot her razor death prism at a person who'd tried to sneak past. He made sure his hands were still in the air. Sheesh. He really didn't want to get stabbed with razor feather wings of death today.

<It's so terribly unimportant that you can keep it. I'll just take my wallet back, yeah?> That silly dino wallet had been with him for years. He'd hate to lose it to this thief after surviving all the others.

Jude had deflected the question very quickly. A little too quickly, Astrid thought. Her keen ears detected his uneasiness about the object that untrained ones would not. Astrid was very intuitive like that.

<Sure, that's totally believable,> she rolled her eyes and continued to inspect the thing. She shook it repeatedly, finding that other than a bit of a shaking noise, not much happened. So, she tried a different approach. There was a little button beneath the text screen that she pressed repeatedly until there was a little beeping sound.

Following the beep, Astrid waited for something to happen. Maybe a voice on a different end? Or a recording? Or best of all, maybe an explosion somewhere?

Instead, there was absolutely nothing. Just the stupid, pointless little beep.

Well, it was a bit of an overreaction from the boy, then. Astrid chucked the object into the street behind her, figuring she had a better chance with whatever was still in the wallet. <I think I'm going to keep this,> she sneered at Jude.

<But you can always try to come get it.> That last comment was in a sing-song voice. As much as he was annoying, she didn't want the French boy to leave just yet. It was nice to talk in her native language again. Plus, he reacted really well to her attempts to be intimidating. 

He took another unconscious half step forward when his X-com had gone flying. Well. He thought he'd hear her activate it. That was good even if she tossed it. The location would recorded. The X-men would send someone. Maybe even the police would come.

> I think I'm going to keep this

<You will not!>

She'd started to say something else, but he was already not listening. His body was already in motion even though he didn't have a more solid plan besides get in close so she can't murderize you with the slicey bits.

And you know what? Worst case scenario, he'd grow his own slicey bits.

>You will not!

There it was; a wonderfully angry reaction. Even more reason to keep the wallet. He seemed way to attached to it for her not to.

She opened the wallet and she went through it again, going through the things he kept in there. Why did he want it back so badly? Maybe it was the weird dinosaur print. He really was totally immature.

Wait... Was he...? He was. He was launching at her. What was he trying to do? Weren't his powers healing, or something? 

<What are you going to do? Heal me to death?> She taunted, whipping around to face him. She looked down, raising her eyebrows at the hand on her arm. 

Would he heal her to death?

<No, beautiful, I'll embarrass you to death.> Because his hand was on her arm. Because she'd let him in past her guard. Because he didn't particularly want to sprout wings (usually wasn't a fun experience!). But mostly, because it'd been a long time since he'd gotten to.

Jude stepped in closer, got his other hand on the girl's hip and started to lead her in a dance.

<Make dance, not death.> Oh yes. He winked at her too.

And if she had too snarky a comeback, he would dip her lower than she could get out of on her own. He was just petty enough to pull it off.

Wait, what?

There was a hand on her arm and another on her hip. And Astrid was being... Danced with? Astrid had never been danced with before. It wasn't quite as horrible as she had expected.

Not that she would let him see that.

Astrid wrinkled her nose at the boy as he led her down the sidewalk. <What are you doing? You'd look less stupid if you stop flailing your arms around.>

From what she could tell, he actually wasn't a terrible dancer, but there was no reason to feed his already inflated ego. Besides, people were staring, and not for the reasons that Astrid would have wanted. 

He ignored a honk and danced the girl out of the street so that traffic could resume. Huh. He might not need back up after all. He'd sort of assumed he'd be bleeding before he'd get to twirl Astrid, which, admittedly was hard with the wings and all. Maybe because she seemed less murderous now, but he'd hate to get this lovely creature arrested. She seemed... like she was trying. In her own way.

> <What are you doing?>

<Dancing.> He tried not to look too pleased about it. She might just relieve him of his kidneys.

> <You'd look less stupid if you stop flailing your arms around.>

<I'm a good guy. I'm pretty used to looking stupid.>

And if he had to give up the wallet... well, it was only a material possession. Maybe it was his last connection to the guy who'd come to the orphanage to adopt him, but it'd been years since he'd seen Sebastian anyway. It was yet another reminder of someone who didn't want him.

A siren sounded far off. Jude slowed their dance once they'd returned back to her cardboard setup on the sidewalk.

<That button you pushed? It's a call for backup. So those cops may come here.> He shrugged, more sober now than before. <Keep the wallet. Sorry there's no cash in there. But there is a bus pass.> Another shrug and Jude let the winged girl go so that he could go look for his x-com.

Should he stick around and try to explain the property damage? Or just, cancel the call and go home? Either way he was pretty sure he was going to get chewed out for improper use.

Astrid didn't really know what to do with herself. Most physical interactions she had experienced with people had been violent, and she had never, ever been danced with. It wasn't even really something that she considered every happening to her. But since it was, she decided to enjoy it while it lasted. It was rather enjoyable, after all.

To make things easier, she shifted her wings back to feathers. They were lighter, and it left less of a possibility of her accidentally stabbing the boy while spinning.

A distant siren behind them seemed to make Jude slow their dance to a halt. It also had him give her some unfortunate news. Had she really pressed a button to call the cops? The blood drained from her face, making her skin appear somehow even paler. She was absolute screwed.

But was she?

<You're... Letting me go?> She asked apprehensively. It didn't really seem like there was any point in him doing that, since he had nothing to gain. But she didn't want to waste the opportunity, or have him change his mind, so she went along with it.

She felt sort of guilty about being so awful to him, even if he did deserve at least some of it. Astrid frowned and glanced down at the wallet still in her hand. She opened the Velcro and dug out the bus pass. She needed that, but she could pass on the rest.

<Here,> she tossed it back to Jude. Even though it wasn't the evil thing to do, they would be even now. Besides, he was kind of cute; for a horrible, dirty goody-two-shoes, that was.

Letting her go?

<Yeah. You'll have to just owe me one.> There it was. That usual smirk. Yeah. She could owe him one. Maybe next time they met, he'd get a free pass on the stabbing. Or maybe she'd even stab a bad guy for him and he could shrug and say she was crazy. Yeah. That'd be good. Bad guys could get stabbed and he wouldn't even be the one doing the stabbing.

He inhaled, nodded once, and let her go. Yeah. It'd be okay. He'd face the music. It'd be okay.

Jude turned to go find his com when she called to him again.

> <Here.> The cloth wallet hit him in the cheek, not hard but it was unexpected. Jude caught it in his hands as it fell.

His wallet. Dinosaurs and all.

For a moment he was well and truly flabbergasted. <W-what's your name?>

The wallet had hit Jude on the cheek. It wasn't what she had intended, but it actually worked out better. She seemed more aloof that way, and far less sympathetic. Hopeful that would still play into her desired image, despite the fact that she was being nice to him.

> <W-what's your name?>

Astrid brow furrowed curiously. Why did he want to know? It was strange; wasn't he supposed to be arresting her, and not letting her go and asking for her name? She had probably just caught him off guard by giving the wallet back. He had even lost the whole confident persona. 

<Astrid. Yours is Jude, right?> 

<Uhhh. Yeah. Jude.> So pithy. Such intellect. Wow.

How'd she know? It wasn't until Astrid had turned away that it hit him. Well, technically, it'd hit him a couple moments prior and now it was in his hands. She'd gone through his wallet. Jude checked for what was there and what wasn't. No real surprises.

Then, all that was left to do was watch her make her exit and try not to leave his jaw on the curb.

((Continued for Jude in Take it Like a Man))

That was her cue to leave. Jude had given her an out, and the sirens were getting louder and louder. Never look a gift horse in the mouth.

Astrid gave Jude one last glance over her shoulder and then beat her wings behind her. At least she wasn't distracted enough to have trouble flying.

She took off immediately, intent on going anywhere but there. She really didn't feel like sticking around long enough to get a good look at the cops. Or whoever else she had accidentally called with that stupid beeper thing. She hoped she hadn't caused too much damage for Jude, though.

Or maybe she hoped that she had. Perhaps it would add to her charm.