It was late afternoon in Brooklyn and the weather had been pretty decent the whole day. It wasn't too hot or too cold and the sun had been shining without too much hindrance from the clouds.
It had been great conditions for Dan as he performed his illusion act on the streets, the nice weather meant people were out and about and they could stop to watch his act without any rainfall driving them away. In fact he had made a pretty decent take today from the crowds he had been able to draw.  
But he had done his job for the day and the last few stranglers of the crowed left as he packed his things up to go. Once he had put everything in his messenger bag he put the strap over his shoulder and headed towards the subway.

As he walked down the pavement he passed a little sandwich shop and nipped inside to get something. He had been too busy performing to have a proper lunch so he decided to buy a cup of soup to tide him over until he got home.
Pea soup was his favorite, but today he fancied tomato. The place was rather quiet so it only took a couple of minutes for him to pay and get on his way again.

He reached the subway and made his way down the stairs. He went through all the barriers finally reaching the platform a few moments before the train pulled in. It wasn't rush hour so there was no sea of people pouring out of the carriages and no crowd of people jostling and packing into the train like sardines.

Dan stepped aboard and the carriage was fairly empty so he took a seat in one of the several empty two seat rows. He put his bag on the seat next to him and made himself comfortable, taking a couple of mouthfuls of soup before he felt the train pull away.
He sat there enjoying the movement of the train for a few minutes before he started to looked around at the other people dotted around the carriage. He always found it interesting to see the variety of people that could only be found on a train in a place like New York. A woman wearing headphones was staring at her phone in a near vegetative state as her screen absorbed all of her attention. Some suit was reading a newspaper that prevented Dan from seeing his face. A Chinese family of tourists sat at the back of the carriage playing with their digital camera and a black haired man who Dan pegged as a cologne or underwear model sat civilly on his own. And of course there was himself dressed like a rock star in leather pants, a grey t-shirt and a waist coat, with make up, a fashion scarf and a bunch of wristbands toping it all off.  

Dan took another mouthful of soup and crossed his legs, putting his ankle on his knee comfortably before he looked at the black haired man. He shot him a smile and a "sup?" nod.
"Hey." He greeted in a friendly manner. "Where're you 'eadin'?" He asked, striking up a conversation. His cockney accent making it obvious he wasn't a native New Yorker.

Tag: Tempest .

Devon had a few meetings downtown and the traffic today was something he didn’t want to deal with, even if he took a taxi. The NYC Subway was one of the best in the world and he was comfortable with its many stops. He climbed aboard and started going through email, thankful for the peace of mind. Soon he was reading some through news blogs.

It occurred to him he hadn’t had lunch yet when a few stops later a man got on and was eating tomato soup. That and a grilled cheese sounded pretty good as the cool air was starting to overtake the summer here in the city. Autumn was just around the corner. When the two made eye contact, Devon gave the man a returning smile.

>> "Hey." He greeted in a friendly manner. "Where're you 'eadin'?"

It wasn’t clear how tall he was, but Devon thought he was a bit shorter. They were both seated and the man’s blond spiked hair made it a bit difficult to tell his height. He was a bit scruffy, a bit tattooed, and overall seemed a British rock star. The leather pants and make up sure helped.

“What?” Devon asked rhetorically. The where momentarily confused him. “Oh!” he chuckled, blue eyes widening with recognition as he lowered his phone. “I was reading over some of the governmental policies they’ve enacted for crossing the RIP. How’s the soup? Smells great.”

Dan looked at the man as his head lifted from his phone and he definitely had the bone structure of a model, if he actually was a model or not was another thing. But Dan had a game of looking at people and making up stories for them, so until he found out other wise the guy modeled cologne or underwear...or both. And he had a frufru dog of some kind that just lived on his lap the whole time he was in his dressing room.

“I was reading over some of the governmental policies they’ve enacted for crossing the RIP."

Well that answer was what he was doing and not where he was going, but that was close enough. It got the conversation going, not that Dan had a clue what they guy was on about. Policies for crossing the RIP? Since when did you need a policy about resting in peace?

Dan looked at the man with a slightly confused expression, he must have meant a different kind of RIP. "Crossin' the wot?" He asked. (crossing the what?)
As far as Dan was concerned the dude might as well have been talking another language.

And pretty boy was talking about politics, so maybe he was a politician's son or some kind of lawyer and not a model?

"How’s the soup? Smells great.”

Dan grinned a little as he clasped his styrofoam cup in one hand, "Oh it's luvly." (lovely) He replied, as he uncrossed his leg. "So is reading about government policies a job or a hobby?" He asked.
The guy didn't look like the type to be interested in politics for work or as a pass time, but if there was one thing that Dan had learned as an illusionist it was that things were not always what they appeared.

Tag: Tempest .

The man was confused, clearly. His bewildered expression quickly informed Devon he’d heard that wrong. Oh so maybe the where was right and it wasn’t reading, it was heading… Yes, that made more sense. Devon’s smile became a grimacing grin as his eyes narrow and his forehead furrowed. Oops.

The guy had excellent eye contact, that was for sure. Devon wondered if perhaps he really was an entertainer. Usually artists had a knack of such social skills; it seemed important to their trade after all. Lock eyes with the audience, that sort of thing. Devon was trying to practice such things in his speaking engagements. You met interesting people afterward, like Celeste.

>> "So is reading about government policies a job or a hobby?"

“A little of both actually,” Devon chuckled. “Especially with this RIP. Maybe you’re a recent visitor and you’ve missed the news?” His eyes glanced to others on the train like the woman with her headphones and the Chinese family. They didn’t seem to be paying much attention. The tourists had already gotten their picture with the blue-eyed man.

“We had some strange things happening for a while. Weather was off, time seemed to move too quickly or too slow. Then at the beginning of the summer, July anyway, a portal ripped itself open in Flatiron… Whole other alternate universe and everything. There’s regulations about crossing being monitored by both American governments,” Devon nodded slowly, watching to see just how surprised the guy was. “I work with a few different organizations that could get impacted, especially for any outreach.”

"Well, I live 'ere now, but I've been outta tan." He replied.
(Well, I live here now, but I've been out of town)

Dan listened as the man spoke about everything that had been happening.
When he said the weather had been off Dan wasn't all that surprised, there had been a lot of weather phenomenons around the world the over the past decade, so hearing that it had happens in New York wasn't a stretch to believe. But Dan squinted slightly when the guy continued to go on about the flow of time and about a portal to an alternate universe.

When the gentleman finished talking Dan stared at him for a moment...What?

After a moment his slightly puzzled squint was replaced by an amused smile and a light laugh, this guy was pulling his leg...Wait, the guy didn't crack a smile as if to say "I got you there" and Dan's smile turned back to a more serious expression. Was this guy for real?...Nah, he couldn't be. New York was full of all kinds of crackpots and comedians and this guy had to be having a laugh. Dan grinned as he saw the funny side...But pretty boy was staring back with a straight face, he was being serious. Dan's smile faded again as he realized the man wasn't joking.

He looked at the guy with blank squint, "You wot?" (You what?) He blurted. "You pullin' my leg?" He asked rhetorically.

Portals and alternate universes was very believable and easy to accept in movies and tv shows, but in the real world it was a lot for him to wrap his brain around. He leaned forwards as he took out his phone and did a quick search, pulling up a load of news headlines. It was a whole thing for sure.  

 "Wait. So a portal opened up, and it leads to an alternate universe?..." He reiterated. "...Why wasn't I told about this?" He all but exclaimed.

His thumbs tapped this phone screen in lightning speed as he typed his manager the message "Portal. Alternate universe. wht, Gavin?" He hit send before he rested the back of his hand on his leg. "An alternate universe opens up, that's the kind of thing you text someone about." He stated, looking back at Devon.

"So wot appened?" (so what happened?) He asked. "Wot's appnin about it now?" (What's happening about it now) He asked relatively calmly before taking a sip from his cup.

It took a little more than learning about the discovery of an alternate universe to shake him for more than a couple of minutes. Now seeing it in person might be a different story.

Tag: Tempest .

(Ooc: As I said elsewhere I'm gonna attempt to write a cockney accent for a bit I'm not
confident that it's gonna go well, but it's fun to try and it'll be good for a laugh if
nothing else haha)

((OOC: I like it! Devon's not the best with accents. He's had issues with others too. ))

The gentleman’s facial expression told Devon all he needed. He didn’t believe Devon, or he was a very good actor. It was a truth the world had to endure now. New Yorkers moved on pretty quickly; they had to. Yep, portal, move along. Ah New York.

But it was still something beyond natural law, much like mutant abilities. Devon still wondered who or what was at fault. It was hard not to suspect mutant powers hadn’t caused this in one way or another. The guy was laughing, but it was serious and Devon’s expression didn’t falter.

>> "You pullin' my leg?"

Devon shook his head, “I’m completely serious.”

>> "...Why wasn't I told about this?"

“People are nervous or they got over it quickly so as not to impact their lives too much – as I expect most New Yorkers are adapting,” Devon grinned. “The city’s endurance is legendary after all.” He tried not to chuckle at the other man’s exuberant comments, but a few came out. It was rather mind-blowing.

>> "Wot's appnin about it now?"

“Travel. People can visit the other side. There’s guards, policies,” Devon lifted his phone a moment. “I’m trying to get the whole lay of the land. It seems things aren’t quite right over on the other side for mutants, so I’m expecting to hear a number are coming to our side of the portal.”

Dan understood what the man was saying about people moving on quickly so as not to disrupt their lives, but still. Even though he had been out of town working how was it no one had said anything to him? Not even his family!

Dan raided his I brows a little and nodded as if to say 'Yeah, I suppose so' when Devon chuckled that the city was famously resilient, "That's true." Dan had lived there enough years by now to have noticed that for himself.

"Travel?" He said, a hint of disbelief in his tone at the notion. Not that he couldn't actually believe it, there was little that surprised him in NY now, "Wow, leave it to New Yorkers to pitch a tent and charge admission." He commented nonchalantly before relaxing back in his seat, seemingly accepting the news as quickly as any native borne New Yorker.

He frowned a little when Devon went on to say about things not being so great for mutants on the other side, "Oh dear." Even though he kept his own mutation a secret from most people Dan knew he had it pretty good, and he always felt for others who didn't have it so easy.

"Is it really wise to let people just go hoppin' into another universe though?" He asked. "Aren't people worried about messin' up the space time continuum or somefin'? He knew nothing about nothing when it came to all this kind of stuff.
All he knew was what he had seen in the movies and shows like Star Trek

Tag: Tempest

Devon chuckled briefly at the man’s joke and glanced around the train to see if others were even paying attention. Didn’t seem so. Ah New York. This subway car had a nice subsection of their city’s culture. Hopefully those on the other side of the RIP could value such, even if they clearly had a mutant rights problem.

This guy also at least seemed sympathetic to those concerns. Maybe he was someone in the public eye after all or maybe he actually cared. His frown seemed genuine, but clearly his surprise at the whole affair was the more pressing topic on his mind.

>> "Is it really wise to let people just go hoppin' into another universe though?" He asked. "Aren't people worried about messin' up the space time continuum or somefin'?

“No, it’s not wise,” Devon shook his head. “In fact an alternate version of yourself might exist on the other side. It’s not always pleasant. I’ve met mine and he was not a nice person. Do be careful. I don’t know if you’re in entertainment – you seem so – but I’m sure you wouldn’t want your doppleganger making a bad name for you.”

“My name’s Devon Hadden by the way,” he nodded his head and smiled at the introduction.

At least someone else saw reason and thought letting people hop between realities was not wise.
Why was it an unwritten rule that only people who have little to no common sense could be in positions of power and decision making?  

Dan quirked an eyebrow when Devon said an alternative version of himself could exist, honestly that one was a bit of a mind bender to think about.
Though on the other hand it was kind of cool to think that another version of him self excised. It was a lot to process, two minutes ago he was riding the train and sipping his soup having a normal day, and now everything he had known about reality and the universe had been tipped on its head. But he was handling it well considering, just a range of understandably surprised tones and expressions as he talked.

"That must 'ave been trippy." Dan replied when Devon said he'd met his AV self. "Meetin' yourself had to be out and out mind bending."
Learning that the theory of alternate universes excising was now a fact was mind bending enough for Dan right now, let alone the idea of meeting himself. Who knew how many other realities was out there and what he was up to in any of them.

"Yeah I am." He confirmed optimistically when Devon said he seems like he was in entertainment. And he frowned slightly when Devon warned him to be careful his double doesn't sully his name. "Oh great. Not only could there be another me running around someplace, the guy could be a jerk too." He shook his head as he let out a sigh.

"I'm Daniel Tyler. The illusionist known as The Escapist." He introduced in return. "Maybe you've 'eard of me?" He added with a little bit of a hopeful twinkle. "But you can call me Dan." He offered with a friendly smile. Hardly anyone called him by his full name...unless he was in trouble.

"So Devon, do you work as part of the RIP committee? Or do you do something else for a livin'?" He asked.
As fun as it was to guess and make up vocations, Dan was curious what pretty boy did for real. He seemed very articulate and abreast with current affairs and political policies for a model, but then again he also seemed to have too much common sense to be an actual politician.

Tag: Tempest.

>> "Meetin' yourself had to be out and out mind bending."

Devon nodded quickly, a haunted look evident in his eyes and a stare out the window opposite them. The blackened, dirty walls of the subway tunnel blinked by quickly but still they weren’t as dark and torn as his dopple’s eyes or the energy he’d been throwing around.

>> "Oh great. Not only could there be another me running around someplace, the guy could be a jerk too."

A laugh left his lips, well intended and actual meant as the smile hit his eyes. While normally the laugh may have continued, it ended fairly quickly. Still the genuine mirth was appreciated. This guy – this Daniel – was funny. Entertainment certainly required charisma, and he seemed to have that. He had to briefly shake his head when asked if he’d heard of Daniel though.

“A pleasure Dan,” he nodded when offered the nickname.

>> "So Devon, do you work as part of the RIP committee? Or do you do something else for a livin'?"

“I’m a psychologist. I own a business and sit on Haven’s board – we focus on volunteerism and education, primarily aiding other social and civic minded people. Many of the groups we work with are involved in urban renewal, education for impoverished areas, minority rights for mutants and foreign refugees, et cetera,” Devon said quickly. It sounded a bit like a marketing spiel every time he tried to talk about it.

“I care about the RIP because of the polices being created around it, especially as many mutants on that side likely would rather live here.”

"Like wise" He replied when Devon said it was a pleasure.

He listened as Devon talked about what he did. A psychologist as well as working on a board for charities, "Wow." He replied. So definitely not a model then. "That all sounds very philanthropic." He commented, "Sounds like interesting work."

Dan nodded lightly with a pensive frown as Devon said about mutants preferring to live on this side of the RIP. "Yeah. I can imagine." He replied in a low tone. Being a mutant he felt for them...though he was very careful who he let know that.

Thankfully Dan hadn't had that much trouble himself over being a mutant, but he knew that not all mutants were so fortunate. And it was sad to think what they must be going through on the other side of that RIP if things were so bad that they wanted to leave their own universe. Think about it, moving country is a big enough thing but moving universes was a whole other level.

"Sounds like Haven does a lot then?" It was more a comment than a question. He wasn't sure what Haven was but he was interested in it. Or at least curious about it...And about what they did to help mutnats.

Tag: Tempest .

(Ooc: Sorry replies are slow, I'm very busy with work and attempting to move house, etc, etc)

Devon nodded. It was both philanthropic and interesting work. He enjoyed it; he was lucky. He felt he was making a difference and enjoyed his work. How many people could say that especially at his age? There were some long and even tougher days, but he was lucky.

>> "Sounds like Haven does a lot then?"

“We’re involved in a lot, certainly, but it’s the people, the members who are doing a lot. We help them do so whether financial backing, training, or even networking. Socialization is a part of it too. You need to take time for yourself, self-manage, relax…” Devon laughed. “…and my friends would tell you I need to listen to myself. But yeah, we’re fairly involved. We have many great members and volunteers.”

“There’s also Sanctuary. Many volunteer there. It was Sanctuary that got me volunteering and helped me found Haven. I help, but there’s a lot of administration, talented individuals making things work. If you have interest, I could give you a small tour. We hold different events so some entertainment is often required too if you’re open for bookings that is,” Devon smiled.

Dan listened as Devon explained everything Haven did. He wasn't gonna lie, he was kind of impressed.
He tilted his head a little and he listened as Devon went on to talk about Sanctuary. "Yeah, sounds very interesting. A tour would be great." Why not? It had piqued his interest and Dan was the type to say yes to most things. It certainly helped to keep life interesting that way and he never knew where it would lead him, and that's the way he liked it.   
 
"Yeah, I do private bookin's." He replied.
Even with his rising fame Dan rarely turned his nose up to a job. Especially when the venue sounded so interesting. "Just speak to my manager. He takes care of all my bookin's and wot not. He'll be able to see when I 'ave any openings for a booking." He said very relaxedly.

As inclined as Dan was to say yes to things he was still sensible enough to direct Devon to his manger, Gavin.
One; Because his manager did organize and arrange most if not all of his bookings. Two; So that he could have Gavin tell Devon that there was no openings in the schedule on the off chance that Dan decided that Sanctuary wasn't his kind of place after all.

Tag: Tempest

(Ooc: Sorry it took me so long to reply. I was slammed over Christmas and it's taken me awhile to start getting back into the swing of things)

>> "Yeah, sounds very interesting. A tour would be great."

“Great, we’ll set that up,” Devon smiled, though only about ten percent of people who said they wanted a tour or to get involved ever really did. You had to try though.

Dan did do private bookings though so maybe they could set something up for the community or at Haven, depending what Devon found upon researching the guy. The fact he had a manager - hopefully legitimate – said something of him too. They could figure out a time and maybe that was the right person to go through for a date.

“Well my stop is next. I’ll look up your manager, Dan and see about that tour and a booking or two,” Devon said with a faint smile as he stood. “Feel free to reach out to me if you’ve any need or interest,” he added, offering his card to the illusionist. “It was nice meeting you.”

Dan nodded with a smile then took a sip of his soup when Devon said they'd set it up.

“Well my stop is next. I’ll look up your manager, Dan and see about that tour and a booking or two,”

When Devon stood Dan set his soup for and sat forward on the edge of his seat ready to shake the mans hand but Devon offered his card before Dan offered his hand.

“Feel free to reach out to me if you’ve any need or interest,”

He flipped the card over in his fingers, quickly looking over before he put it in his pocket, "Will do, mate."

“It was nice meeting you.”

"Yeah, it was nice meetin' you as well." He said shaking his hand with a firm but friendly grip.

Dan sat back again and picked up his soup up. Crossing his leg and relaxing back in his seat with his free hand resting on his ankle, "Feel free to look my manager up, or you can just use the card in your top pocket." He said with a charming wink, before the man got of the train.

Oh yes he had flawlessly slipped his own business card in Devon's pocket, making it appear there 'magically'.

Tag: Tempest .