Within a few hours of her plane landing, Kitra had gotten her license and passport updated, a hot shower, hair braided, and a small snack in. She didn't have any jet lag as she had managed to sleep nearly the entire plane ride back to New York City. Her apartment was in tip-top shape of course, fully stocked with food and necessities. Kitra wasn't in the mood to stay cooped up so got herself dressed. The day was currently warm, but you never knew when that would change. So, Kitra put on a dark purple dress that had quarter-sleeves and went down to an inch above her knees. Dark green leggings went on underneath, black boots with about an inch heel, and of course a boot dagger went into each boot. "Never can be to careful," Kitra mused out loud to herself. To finish off her look, a dark green jacket was also worn, and a mid-sized purple purse that held her wallet, paper, and a sketchbook with her pencils. Other small necessities were added and apartment keys grabbed and off she went.

About an hour later Kitra was sitting at the bar at the Blue Hill restaurant. She had a strawberry long island about half gone, her cheeseburger completely gone and her fries were close to being devoured as well. At present, she was content to just listen to the few conversations around her as well as watch the news on the TV behind the bar counter.

Blue Hill was quaint. The sort of place one might take a date, or find a date. It had a bar. That was an important factor it had going in its favor.

Ashton settled into a bar stool near another person. He didn't spare a glance at them, mind for the moment focused on his order.

"Whiskey on the rocks, please." Ashton said. He held up a hand the the bartender to get their attention. The bartender nodded. Drink order ordered, Ashton glanced around the bar.

There was a television, but it wasn't playing any March madness games which was insane. He'd have to flag the barkeep down and make a request. It was a fairly busy evening. Also, there was a red headed woman sitting next to him.

Ashton smiled politely at the redhead and gave her a little nod. "Evening." he said.

The bartender gave his his whiskey, and Ashton took the opportunity to ask about the game. The guy turned one on. He frowned. Not one of his teams. Then again most of his picks had already been eliminated .

To the bar at large, Ashton commented "These upsets are killing my bracket!"

Kitra was brought forth from her musings and drink when a distinguished looking gentleman sat down on the bar stool next to her. Not that she was complaining as she looked him over from the corner of her eye as he ordered a whiskey on the rocks.

Kitra returned the small nod, smile, and "Evening" with a smile of her own. "Evening yourself,"

She gestured to his drink after he spoke about the teams upsetting his brackets. "Long day, hmm?"

Then, twirling her drink a bit before taking a sip than speaking, "Who's your teams?" Not that Kitra really knew much about the current sports, but still, small talk was small talk.

Ashton smirked at the long day comment

"With my job, every day is a long day." He said wryly. Which was true, if a little harsh towards the subject matter. Mutant related crimes... yeah. There was always something rough or grisly to deal with. It wasn't easy like handing out speeding tickets or arresting degenerates. He was lighthearted about it, though. He wasn't going to let a hard job get him down.

He took a drink of his whiskey before answering her question about brackets and teams.

"One of my teams is doing well. Villanova." A one seed. Of course it was doing well. "But the others... Syracuse got bumped early. Ohio State... made it past the first game, but Gonzaga got em. And Rhode Island lost to Duke. Clearly outmatched, but I'm sentimental with my picks. Except Villanova. They just look good."

He felt like he ought to explain, so he didn't look like a guy who picked middle to low ranked teams hoping for an upset. Though that strategy would have worked wonders this year, with Loyola.

"I mainly picked teams from places I've lived. Ashton said.

"With my job, every day is a long day."

Kitra blinked a few times and also took another sip of her drink. It was getting down towards the bottom and was a bit tart.

"One of my teams is doing well. Villanova. But the others... Syracuse got bumped early. Ohio State... made it past the first game, but Gonzaga got em. And Rhode Island lost to Duke. Clearly outmatched, but I'm sentimental with my picks. Except Villanova. They just look good. "I mainly picked teams from places I've lived."

She digested this information with a nod and another sip. " Sadly, I'm not a huge fan of certain sports, but I try to track of them." Kitra shrugged slightly before downing the rest of her drink. She flagged the bartender down, who simply put another strawberry long island in front of her and grinned before turning back around to grab another basket of fries from the window and placing those in front of her as well. Kitra smiled and pushed a twenty towards him before turning slightly to the man besides her.

Popping a fry in her mouth and moving the basket closer towards the gentleman, she swallowed and then smiled and gestured to the fries. "Help yourself. Name's Kitra, thought I might introduce myself before we get further along in our conversation." Taking a swig of her drink, swallowed, then spoke again. "What makes your days so long at your job? And if its so long, why not try something new?" Kitra was genuinely curious and her tone reflected as such. The fries were too good to resist as she popped another in her mouth while waiting for his reply.

The woman didn't know sports. Well okay. That was fine. Some people just didn't care for certain things. It just meant the near entirety of everything he'd just said had been blathering gibberish. That was all.

"I see." Ashton smiled calmly. The sports conversation topic, then, was basically expended. Unless they hit on a be she happened to keep track of, that was. He'd have to dig around if he wanted to learn more about her. They put a pin in that little line of conversation tangent, as she introduced herself and offered him some fries.

Ashton politely nabbed a fry, and crunched it down with a quick 'thanks.' He took a drink, to wash the fry down.

"My name's Ashton," He told her.

She asked him about his job. The curiosity from her just slipped right out. Ashton suddenly got the feeling his answer wouldn't make him seem very mysterious. Not that he was going for that or anything.

"I'm a detective with Mutant Related Crimes for the NYPD." Ashton said. "It can be difficult. Things don't get solved in an hour, and the rating can be a bit higher than As seen on Cable TV."


Ashton took another drink, and considered the last part of the question. After a moment, he told her why he didn't quit. "It's good knowing you're doing something. Helping people. Even if the hours suck and the subject matter is grim." Ashton smiled wistfully.

"What about you? What do you do for a living?" He snagged another fry. Hey, she had offered.

Kitra blinked and blinked again as she digested the information she'd been given. Mutant Related Crimes?! Just how long have I been gone? I need to make sure I don't react oddly at all though. Even though I haven't done anything wrong. She had always had issues with authority figures, at least law wise. Getting a hold of herself mentally, though she had shown no reaction but slight surprise on her face. kitra caught why he still did it, despite the difficulty and long hours. She could easily understand helping people, even if they weren't always grateful.

"What about you? What do you do for a living?"

Ah, a question she could easily answer by showing him. Kitra smiled, "I am a freelance artist, and its quite commendable that you do such a thing. I've heard some mutants can get rather, nasty." Her tone had went grim as she finished speaking. Her mind had turned to some of the nastiness she had seen, friends she had seen changed for the worse. Kitra shook her head and took a long swig of her drink. She also munched on another fry and looked around to see if there was a paper coaster for her to use. Aha! She spotted one and a pen nearby which she snagged.

Kitra took a closer look at Ashton before looking down at the coaster she had snagged. She hummed briefly while she quickly sketched out his face and features before sliding it to him. She put the pen back where it was before the bartender would need it again. Looking at Ashton, she rested her face on one of her hands as she spoke, "That's what I do for a living. Been drawing since I was little."

He completely missed any nerves she was showing. Even detectives have off nights, and he was off-duty. Drinking whiskey. Letting his brain vent steam. Her reaction of mild surprise was met with nothing more than a slight inclination of his chin.

He rested his fingers around the lip of the whiskey glass as Ashton listened to her reply. She said mutants could get rather nasty.

"And some humans." Ashton agreed. Mutant-Related Crimes wasn't only about crimes mutants had committed. It was also about crimes mutants were involved in. Hate crimes fell under that umbrella.

He saw Kitra rush for a coaster, and hum to herself like some kind of enthusiastic schoolgirl. He drubbed that mental image down. She was an artist. Judging from the sketch she'd done of him, a pretty decent one, too.

"Definitely better than the sketch artists we have on hand to draw criminals from verbal descriptions." Ashton smiled.

On the screen, someone got fouled and someone in the room swore.

"I've never been much for art, myself. At least, drawing. Film, I like. Not that I'm a total idiot when it comes to paintings." He made awry face. He wasn't sure what he was getting at. He didn't have a real point. He was just talking. "I've been to museums."

Kitra grimaced inwardly, Ashton sounded rather bored. She couldn't blame him, most folks came to bars to have their problems vanish for awhile and to turn their brains off. She definitely couldn't keep the giggle in when he mentioned the museum. "Museums can be interesting but mainly boring."

Kitra blinked and stared at her drink. She'd reached the bottom of it without knowing. Ah well, best time to go to the lady's room. "Pardon me for a few minutes Ashton." She smiled and carefully slipped off the barstool. Guess drinking Sake all those years in Japan kept her tolerance up. Now to walk to said restroom without mishap. Sounded easy enough. Kitra looked around for the sign for their restrooms and headed that way once she spotted them. Thankfully, she was completely steady on her feet with no ill effects from the alcohol.

She had a nice laugh. Had she thought he was bored by the topic, though? Museums, boring? He opened his mouth to say 'no! They're not boring! They're plenty interesting. I've taken a lot of dates there and they all seem to like it! I'm just not an artist, myself, and--' He clamped his jaw shut before he said any of that.

Instead of the unflattering drivel he'd been about to say, Ashton laughed good-naturedly. "I wouldn't call them boring. I just don't know much about drawing, outside of art class in school (and any art history I took in college)."

She eyed her drink like it had done her wrong. Her very empty drink. The woman smiled at him and politely excused herself. It seemed nature had called. Either that, or he'd insulted her by not knowing crap about art. Maybe he was the boring one? He'd said her drawing was good! Hadn't he? Hell. It had been a long day. He hadn't come to the bar trying to pick anyone up. He might have been a bit rusty at that, if he had been trying... but he'd just been trying to be friendly.

Ashton nodded, and sipped at his whiskey as she abandoned him to himself. He suppressed the urge to grumble and 'hrm.'

Apr 5, 2018 20:11:14 GMT -6 Ashton Drake said:

She had a nice laugh. Had she thought he was bored by the topic, though? Museums, boring? He opened his mouth to say 'no! They're not boring! They're plenty interesting. I've taken a lot of dates there and they all seem to like it! I'm just not an artist, myself, and--' He clamped his jaw shut before he said any of that.

Instead of the unflattering drivel he'd been about to say, Ashton laughed good-naturedly. "I wouldn't call them boring. I just don't know much about drawing, outside of art class in school (and any art history I took in college)."

She eyed her drink like it had done her wrong. Her very empty drink. The woman smiled at him and politely excused herself. It seemed nature had called. Either that, or he'd insulted her by not knowing crap about art. Maybe he was the boring one? He'd said her drawing was good! Hadn't he? Hell. It had been a long day. He hadn't come to the bar trying to pick anyone up. He might have been a bit rusty at that, if he had been trying... but he'd just been trying to be friendly.

Ashton nodded, and sipped at his whiskey as she abandoned him to himself. He suppressed the urge to grumble and 'hrm.'

Kitra had made it to the bathroom, she was certainly not meaning to be rude but nature called. Thankfully, she didn't take long and had freshened up and cleaned up. Barely five minutes had passed when she slipped back onto her barstool next to Ashton.

"Sorry about that." Kitra shrugged, " Nature calls at inconvenient times." The bartender had set yet another drink in front of her which she gladly took a sip from. "Please don't misunderstand, not all of the museum is boring." Kitra's eyes went slightly downcast as she spoke again, " I actually dislike the art itself there. I mean the sculptures are lovely and the artifacts." She coughed slightly to get rid of her eyes tearing up slightly. Bad memories of her classmates teasing her had arisen in her mind. Kitra shook her head slightly and took another drink.

Once done with her very long sip, er more of a gulp, of her drink, she turned her face to look at Ashton. "I should have worded my earlier statement better, my apologies."
She paused and looked at the bartender and motioned for another whiskey for him. "This one's on me for hearing me get a bit sentimental."

When she came back, she tried to explain her position further. She didn’t like the art at the museum. Or, at museums. Had they been talking about a specific one? He couldn’t recall.

Kitta’s reaction when talking about the art and sculptures was odd, to say the least. A normal person may not have noticed the slight tearing of the eyes when she mentioned the sculptures, or the awkward cough and the harried drink. He was a detective, though, so that was his bread and butter. Reading people. He read her as someone with passion, but also something deeper down that had a negative feeling towards the topic, like a bad experience. Something personal, though it might have been as innocuous as not liking a certain sculptures work, or having dated a sculptor and remembered his cheating mug when she mentioned the art. People develop ticks like that. Ashton didn’t question it. At least, not then and there.

She apologized, and Ashton smiled understandably at her. ”No problem.” He said.

Then, Kitra offered to buy him a drink. Honestly, it was less an offer, more an insistence because the bartender moved to oblige before Ashton could politely decline. Money was money, the bartender had decided. Whether the customer drank the drink when his own whiskey wasn’t fully drained was not his concern. The glass clinked against the counter in front of Drake a moment later. All Ashton could do was tell the lady “Thanks.”

”I get it,” Ashton said, after a drink from his old glass. ”Sentimentality. I’ve had a few bad experiences myself. Can’t watch werewolf movies anymore because of some bad memories.” He frowned over that thought. It had been a bit more open than he usually was when sharing personal details, though it may not have appeared that way. Without an explanation, it just seemed like a silly aversion. Like some people have to clowns. He was silent for a good second, then wryly added ”Thank God vampires are the norm these days. Teenage werewolves are on the way out.”

Apr 16, 2018 7:58:26 GMT -6 Ashton Drake said:

When she came back, she tried to explain her position further. She didn’t like the art at the museum. Or, at museums. Had they been talking about a specific one? He couldn’t recall.

Kitta’s reaction when talking about the art and sculptures was odd, to say the least. A normal person may not have noticed the slight tearing of the eyes when she mentioned the sculptures, or the awkward cough and the harried drink. He was a detective, though, so that was his bread and butter. Reading people. He read her as someone with passion, but also something deeper down that had a negative feeling towards the topic, like a bad experience. Something personal, though it might have been as innocuous as not liking a certain sculptures work, or having dated a sculptor and remembered his cheating mug when she mentioned the art. People develop ticks like that. Ashton didn’t question it. At least, not then and there.

She apologized, and Ashton smiled understandably at her. ”No problem.” He said.

Then, Kitra offered to buy him a drink. Honestly, it was less an offer, more an insistence because the bartender moved to oblige before Ashton could politely decline. Money was money, the bartender had decided. Whether the customer drank the drink when his own whiskey wasn’t fully drained was not his concern. The glass clinked against the counter in front of Drake a moment later. All Ashton could do was tell the lady “Thanks.”

”I get it,” Ashton said, after a drink from his old glass. ”Sentimentality. I’ve had a few bad experiences myself. Can’t watch werewolf movies anymore because of some bad memories.” He frowned over that thought. It had been a bit more open than he usually was when sharing personal details, though it may not have appeared that way. Without an explanation, it just seemed like a silly aversion. Like some people have to clowns. He was silent for a good second, then wryly added ”Thank God vampires are the norm these days. Teenage werewolves are on the way out.”

Kita listened quietly while sipping her drink. A werewolf aversion? It didn't surprise her with all the different mutations that the world offered. A wry smile came to her lips at the vampire comment. She refused to think about Zelek or Hunter.

"Didn't realize vamps were getting to be a new thing." She chuckled as light in her eyes went dark for a moment. Taking a gulp of her drink she went on. " Far as I know they were around over a decade ago." Another gulp of her near empty drink. "Pesky annoying jack**sses they were. Like to disappear for no reason too."

Kitra frowned at her now empty drink but motioned for the bartender to bring her a water. She was getting a bit too loose tongued for her tastes. And before she could keep her mouth shut, it opened and spoke against her wishes. " Any good run ins of the mutant kind? Hopefully not all your experiences were bad."

Apparently, she too had some sort of history with a creature of the night. It didn’t sound like it had ended with glittering memories, either.

Ashton frowned. ”Sounds like it.” he agreed. To the jackass comment.

There were plenty of bad experiences they could both mull over. Good ones, though? He considered for a second.

”I’ve worked alongside several mutants i would consider friends. Guess I would call that good.” His mouth, too, ran on without his permission. ”My old partner was pretty amazing.” Ashton vanished into his drink at the realization of an overshare.