>>>"What, you're gonna start eating pigeons?"

>>> "He can't just eat pigeons, surely. That's bird-on-bird violence."

”Wouldn’t be the first time, too many feathers...” Carrick said wondering if he should have kept that bit of information from his friend and girlfriend. He shrugged, eyeing the steak and happy with his choice for breakfast. ”I’m an Apex predator. I eat what I want.” he said thumbing his chest and smirking to both of the girls.

The next comment got a snicker from Carrick, he was about to say something then thought better of it.

POP!

Dropping the fork he was using to turn the meat he followed suit and dropped low out of reaction. Adrenaline kicked in and his pupils turned to slits. His purring stopped and he looked back to the location of the sound. Was he hanging out with Zek and SUPER agents too much? Should he ask for a vacation?

It was Praxi holding a bottle of champagne and the harder stuff. His hand went over his tattoo on his chest and he let out a loud exhale. ”Gryphon form keeps growing.” he opened one of his wings keeping it away from the stove. It might have also taken up the walk way behind him and a big inconvenience to anyone close to him. ”Pretty sure me wings grew a foot last year.” he said trying to add to the conversation.

That was until they started talking about their curves. His tail flicked behind him as they continued to talk about her … build then the princess. Closing his wing behind him he looked over his shoulder to both of the girls. Cat like eyes followed Praxi for a moment then to the princess. His pointed ears turned red and Carrick went back to eyeing the steak.

”If yer sharing I’ll take some.” he grabbed a clean fork and added, ”The drink I mean.” he chuckled and looked to the Princess ”Never thought Praxi would be a bad influence on us. Drinks so early in the day.”

For an 'apex predator', Carrick did react to the champagne pop exactly like a cat. Amethyst jumped too, before she realized what was happening. She was familiar with the idea of cocktails, she quite liked it actually, which is why they had those things in the fridge. She was a little surprised Praxi knew too, though.

>>”Gryphon form keeps growing. Pretty sure me wings grew a foot last year.”

"It definitely takes up more of the bed." the princess smirked, reaching out to scratch his wing gently between the feathers before she nudged it away so she could continue making breakfast.

>>"I don't know how much I'll keep growing. I used to have a smaller full-size, but most people do, right? I think at some point I'd probably stop growing like other people do. I guess I could be taller now, but... well, I dunno. I feel comfortable with the 'curves,'... Why? Do you think I look silly like this? I mean, I like the way your body is, but this fits me more?"

"I don't think it's silly" Amethyst shrugged. She had learned with Carrick that other people were sometimes more insecure about their bodies or had different ideas of decency (which is why she tended to cover up somewhat more now, even when at home). "I think it's kind of lucky that you get to choose what you look like. Why wouldn't you want to look attractive?"

Carrick, on his part, was very much occupied by the cooking now.

>>”If yer sharing I’ll take some. The drink I mean. Never thought Praxi would be a bad influence on us. Drinks so early in the day.”

"Says the man making a steak for breakfast" the princess snorted, carrying the fruit bowl to the dining table before she returned to fish for glasses in the cupboard. "Where did you learn to do this, Praxi?"

Praxi needed to be more careful when handling temperamental objects like a bubbly wine. She liked being in the kitchen, but she lacked dexterity and could be clumsy. It was fortunate she didn’t drop the bottle; thank you, adhesion training. Still, she should have been ready for the popping cork and put Carrick on edge. She apologized before continuing with her pouring; cats didn’t like sudden loud noises.

The blush of Carrick’s ears was luckily (for him) missed by Praxi, who struggled to recognize shades of red through her green vision. She did notice him sneaking a glance, though; the benefits of being able to see through the back of one’s head. Kinda.

Amethyst was surprisingly empathetic to Praxi’s desire to look a way she felt comfortable with. The Princess really had grown as a person over the years. ”When you put it like that, I guess you’re right.” She followed with a short, bubbly laugh as the sentence hit her. ”Ha. The Princess called me attractive.” Whether or not she meant to do so. Eat that, Atlantean high society.

Carrick asked for a drink, which was just silly on his part. ”I was already gonna give you both some. A drink, I mean,” she added to parrot the awkward addition. ”And it’s not a bad influence. It’s brunch. Very different rules.” Or so she was told.

”How’d I learn to make mimosas?” Praxi tried thinking back to the morning and the night that proceeded it. ”I was grumpy that I had learned to wear dresses but the Mansion had no big dances to attend. So a girl named Elke dragged me to crash a party. There was… not an insignificant amount of spiked punch.” That was quite the hazy memory, but also quite the night.

”Anyway, we woke up the next day and she made mimosas with a bottle of champagne she stole. Borrowed? Okay, probably stole.”

The pan was hot, the shifter tapped one of the steaks with a finger to see if it was the rareness he desired. The other two were going to cook a bit longer. It was known that not everyone had the same desire to see the steaks as red as he preferred. His stomach growled loudly. ”I learned from Mike and Sam, both of which are from the states. They both can’t be wrong about steaks fer breakfast.” he said defending himself.

>>>”Ha. The Princess called me attractive.”

”I heard it!” the shifter said slightly far less awkward now that he was teasing the princess. He flashed a grin towards her and winked and looked back down to the steaks. ”Compliments are far and few in this apartment.” he said lying. ”Savor them!”

Scoffing, ”Sure but when I do it without breakfast everyone says I’m an alcoholic.” he shook his head, ”which I’m not. I’m immortal!” he said confidently. His tail flicked behind him as he looked back up towards Praxi making sure his eyes didn’t travel from her face. Which... now that he thought about it could have been considered her whole body? Anyways, he focused on where her face was currently.

”Elke...” did he know her? The shifter knew everyone at the school... at least he made sure everyone knew of him. ”Think I met her before, she’s the one who controls shadows?” he shook his head, ”Nah, that’s not her.”

”Praxi, crashing a party?” Carrick teased pretending to be shocked. She was the type of girl who sat in on classes for fun. Something the Irishman never understood. ”Were ya planning on returning it?” he asked raising an eyebrow. It was something everyone said to him when it was discovered that he ‘borrowed’ something.

The smug grin Carrick had widened, ”She is gonna be a bad influence on us.” he said again to the Princess. That was then Carrick had a great idea.

”Great idea Praxi!” his tail flicked behind him mischievously as he grabbed three plates for the steaks, ”Darling would ya like ta crash a party with us tonight?” looking to Amethyst hopeful she’d say yes.

>>”Ha. The Princess called me attractive.”

The irony was not lost on Amethyst. She had been raised to see gorgons as displeasing and unattractive, due to their physical differences. And then she met Carrick, who was the last person she'd ever imagine being with. And here they were. Praxi, on her part, was as different as possible - given she had a whole body made of jello that could take on any shape - and yet, the princess was warming to having her around.

>>”I heard it! Compliments are far and few in this apartment. Savor them!”

"Pfft." Amethyst swatted at his tail again, before hopping up to take a seat on the counter, and picking up one of the mimosas Praxi made. "If I gave you any more compliments, your ego would not fit through the door."

>>”How’d I learn to make mimosas? I was grumpy that I had learned to wear dresses but the Mansion had no big dances to attend. So a girl named Elke dragged me to crash a party. There was… not an insignificant amount of spiked punch. Anyway, we woke up the next day and she made mimosas with a bottle of champagne she stole. Borrowed? Okay, probably stole.”

Amethyst arched an eyebrow. Praxi, crashing a party and getting drunk. Go figure.

>>”Praxi, crashing a party?... She is gonna be a bad influence on us... Great idea Praxi! Darling would ya like ta crash a party with us tonight?”

The princess tilted her head at Carrick (sitting on the counter, at least she was the same height). "You want me to crash a party?... I get invited to parties." She noted. "And I'm not falling for you making me sing again."

Praxi was happy to embrace an unexpected compliment, though if this kept up, her roommates were going to put two and two together and notice Praxi got swirly when she was embarrassed or flustered. Well, Amethyst would notice. Praxi was convinced Carrick was too oblivious to notice things like that.

"Elke could make clones of herself," Praxi clarified. "Pretty useful. Shame I can't split in two." She could, but the split half would just be a non-sentient puddle. Not nearly as cool as a clone.

Praxi finished the mimosas and slid one to Amethyst and one to Carrick. Praxi's tale of youthful indiscretion was inspiring Carrick to plan some mischief of his own. Mischief he wanted to drag the girls along with. "A party? I mean, I haven't done one of those in years... but if there's a chance of hearing the Princess sing, I could be open to this." Invited or party crashing, attending a party with Carrick and Amethyst sounded too fun to say no, even if she was wary of strangers.

”Here I thought that was why you were interested in me.” he said squinting and fake sneering at Amythest. ”Must be fer me other ass-ets then.” he turned his tail in her direction and shook one of said assets as he dug for the proper cutlery while his tail batted at her.

”Pssshh, invites are boring!” he said standing up right turning and leaning into the princess who was sitting on the counter. Flashing a smirk, ”Where's the surprise? Ya know what ta expect with invites but fer us...” he pointed to himself then Praxi, ”they come around as much as yer compliments.” he said teasing her further.

”Years?” he looked from Praxi back to the princess. ”Years Ames, Years. Praxi you poor girl!” Carrick picked up the mimosa meant for him and took a sip before grabbing the first steak and plopping it down on the plate so it could rest. Followed by the other two.

”Yer making it sound like I tricked ya into singing. It just so happened that the place was known fer making people sing. How was I ta know about such a magical place?” he shook his head in fake disbelief as if he wasn’t planning on bringing her back there at some point. Maybe not tonight, but the idea was planted in Carrick’s mind now.

”It was beautiful Praxi!” he said turning his back to the princess and swooning into her, ”Like hearing an angel sing!” he said chuckling. ”and I know a bit about angels.”

”Well if ya don’t want ta sing, do ya have any invites fer tonight?” if not he knew a place where there was always some kind of party.

Amethyst swatted at Carrick's tail again, and took her drink back to the breakfast table. For all the annoying bravado, Carrick seemed... in his element, around the both of them.

>>”Pssshh, invites are boring! Where's the surprise? Ya know what ta expect with invites but fer us... they come around as much as yer compliments.”

Amethyst wrinkled her nose. He was not wrong. Back in Atlantis, they never had the... people like them invited to the parties. She was beginning to discover New York was not that different.

>>"A party? I mean, I haven't done one of those in years... but if there's a chance of hearing the Princess sing, I could be open to this."

>>”Years? Years Ames, Years. Praxi you poor girl!... Yer making it sound like I tricked ya into singing. It just so happened that the place was known fer making people sing. How was I ta know about such a magical place? It was beautiful Praxi! Like hearing an angel sing! and I know a bit about angels.”

Amethyst rolled her eyes, moving out of the way; if Carrick wanted to swoon, he could swoon without spilling her drink. She still didn't believe he had taken her to the singing place completely by accident."Calm down, fly boy."

>>”Well if ya don’t want ta sing, do ya have any invites fer tonight?”

The princess gave him an amused look over her glass. "Not for tonight, no. My schedule is not that busy."

Praxi's grasp on conversational English had developed a lot over her years of living in America. When she arrived in the country, idioms and wordplay were easy to miss. Nowadays, when Carrick flaunted his ass-ets, Praxi snuck a glimpse because she did not miss the joke.

"Yep, I'm truly suffering," Praxi joked flatly in response to Carrick's dramatics. Focusing on her time as an X-Trainee was usually enough to keep Praxi busy, but perhaps she could have been doing more to nurture her social life. Carrick was good at getting Praxi out of her shell. He also knew when to plant seeds in her mind like a place that makes people sing. Interesting.

Parties in New York were different than Atlantis; namely, Praxi wouldn't get arrested for attending a party in New York. Well, probably not. "Listen, I'm sure I could get party invites if I wasn't devoting all my social energy to dealing with a mischievous beast of a man." Amethyst, conversely, did not require much social energy, which was... unexpected. When it was just the two of them in the apartment, they had a habit of quietly co-existing together.

Of course, that didn't mean she wouldn't like to see Amethyst in a party setting. "So if you're not busy tonight, it sounds a lot like you'd be free for something fun with Carrick and I, riiiiight?"

Beast of a man? Mischievous? ”You have another beasty friend?” Carrick wondered. Was it Rowan? He did live at the mansion... which was currently destroyed. Maybe he should check in on him. ”But I’m the best one right?” he asked. It was almost on par with finding out there was a better flyer in the city. Like that would ever happen.

”Oh how the tables have turned, an opening in yer schedule? Can’t believe it! Would ya like to join us?” he said grinning and sidestepping closer to Praxi so the princess could see them both. He was practically bouncing.

Looking to Praxi he beamed in all his shirtless glory ”Which is great fer us! We get to be accompanied by a princess! Royalty! Lucky us!” his tail was flicked behind signaling he was toying with the princess.

”Aaaand it just so happens I know of a party. A pretty big one too. I was planning on skipping it fer a gig buuuuuut... can't have ya getting bored now can we?” he raised his glass and took a swig and walked back over to the steaks.

”Ya both still have yer Atlantean clothes right?”

Amethyst leveled a look at the two of them. Both bouncy in different ways. And very excited about the idea of a party. In Amethyst's experience, most parties were not all that they were cracked up to be. But that was because it had been her actual royl duty to attend hundreds of them.

"Are you two ganging up on me?" he rolled her eyes, amused. "Fine. We'll go. But it better be a good one, Carrick. And if someone spills beer on me I'm leaving" She smirked. "I have an Atlantean wardrobe, darling. And you do too. And I can give Praxi anything she... likes." Since she could technically fit into...basically anything.

The flight over the city was cold, his pasty exposed legs reflected the light pollution now that it was evening and he was resisting the urge to dig into the backpack that Praxi was currently inhabiting for the flight. It was the same one he had for Hymori but with Praxi’s ability to change shape it made it easier for him to fly two people. ”That’s the place!” Carrick nodded and turned a little so one of the windows on the backpack was pointed to where he was looking as he circled above.

It was a fraternity house with some Greek letters. None of them made sense to the shifter but he also never bothered to learn them despite the amount of times he had attended college parties. ”Figured you two would fit right in!” Carrick chuckled as a gust of wind sent a chill down his spine. They landed in front of the building and Carrick set the Princess down first followed by setting his backpack down and opening it for Praxi.

It was a toga party. Well at least that was what the flyer said. The mismatching colors of people getting creative with curtains and bedsheets made it clear that they would have the most authentic attire. Did his current tunic count as one? Was a tunic a robe? Did it matter?

”Ladies shall we?” Carrick asked as he tossed his backpack into the nearest bush along with the remaining contents inside in case they got into any trouble, it was habit now to travel with at least one pair of underwear along with a few random ‘tools of his trade’.. It was habit now for him to be somewhat prepared when he wasn’t traveling with Zek.

His tail draped behind him as he sauntered up to the cue line as people were handing over ID’s to someone who was already clearly inebriated, they were in the right place alright. “Nice costume.” he said half heartedly as he looked to Carrick’s wings. ”Thanks! One of a kind mate!” he said gesturing to the tunic Amethyst had given him as a gift oblivious he was speaking about his wings. ”Little breezy but it’s a nice fit. Makes shifting a bit easier!”

“Yeah sure go on....” Carrick looked to the door then to the two he arrived with making sure not to get separated. The rotating lights and loud music was calling to him though... well at least the lights. The music he’d have to adapt to.

“Whoa... Hey.” Carrick’s attention turned away from the door as the doorman realized the pair he was traveling with. “I’m Kyle. Never seen you before.” the guy said as he was now ignoring Carrick completely to make eyes at the princess. There was a small rumble in the shifters chest as he growled glad the music was more than likely drowning the sound out.

Amethyst allowed herself to be carried to this so-called party Carrick and Praxi were intent on crashing. She had not spent much time on college campuses. She noted the Greek letters on the building, but they meant nothing to her. It was just gibberish.

>>”Figured you two would fit right in!”

"None of those are actually togas" Amethyst observed as she was set down, smoothing her own exquisite teal chiton over her body. She was happy to accompany the other two to a place they were excited to go, but that didn't mean she would stop being judgmental about it.

>>“Whoa... Hey. I’m Kyle. Never seen you before.”

Amethyst arched an eyebrow at Kyle. He was handsome, in a clueless college student way. "Princess Amethyst. We are here to grace this gathering with out presence."

Tides and tremors, this was really happening. A college party. Well worth a trip in a backpack for the sake of convenience. Praxi was able to stow her dress away for the trip, so she had no complaints.

Unpacking herself, Praxi quickly reformed her body to fill out the toga-inspired violet dress. (She confirmed it was violet with someone who didn't see the world in shades of green, just to be safe.) Honestly, looking at the partygoers already in the middle of celebrating, Praxi was potentially overdoing it. Not that she cared, because if she was crashing a party, she was dressing for it! Even her reformed figure hinted at her desire to stand out with a distinct curvy silhouette.

Of course, there was the worry they'd get trouble for their obvious mutations. The drunk doorman pointed out Carrick's wings, (not that he noticed,) and Praxi got a clear once over, but they got the go-ahead anyway. This WAS New York, after all.

Another thing that shouldn't have been a shock was Amethyst getting an extra dose of attention right out of the gate. Kyle didn't notice Carrick getting prickly, but Praxi was spending enough time with the shifter to pick up on the rumble. She chuckled, wrapping an arm around Amethyst's shoulders, holding herself firm with a cool gel-like texture. (And no residue, because she wasn't looking to annoy Amethyst here.) "Yep, she's quite the Princess," Praxi joked, thinking it best to keep the royal standing lowkey. "We're from another Uni. Lovely Carrick here's showing us how... your school parties. Hope that's alright!" She giggled, trying to play off her realization that she didn't know which school this fraternity belonged to.

The rumbling continued through the exchange. Carrick never had a girlfriend like this... well he had Liz years ago but that didn’t count. The way he felt for the Amythest was... different more intense. Like he needed her. So when Kyle started to flirt with her the shifter was doing everything in his power not to let one of the other forms influence his choices. They were far more territorial.

“Whoa,” Kyle said mocking a bow. It wasn’t as rehearsed nor as sassy as Carrick’s but that was the last straw. Kyle would pay. “A pleasure Princess, and welcome!” the college student’s smile widened as Praxi wrapped around the princess and faded while he looked back to Carrick. “Well it seems your friend knows where the good parties are! Welcome! I’ll be in later if you want a tour of the place. You two could check out my room, where the after party normally is. Room 304.”

The shifter smirked mischievously making a note of the room number. A look that if either one of the people he arrived saw knew he was already plotting something. ”Aye, been here once or twice and yer parties are always the best. See ya around Kyle!” he said with more inflection on the man’s name. The growl didn’t subside until he entered the building, glad for Praxi diffusing the situation before it got any worse.

When they entered Carrick turned to the girls, ”Oh one more thing, don’t take drinks from random people...” he said as he spotted someone walking around with a tray of Jello shots and snagging a handful for the group. ”Welcome ta college loves!” he said doing the exact thing he said not to do and took one of the shots and kicked it back then offering the rest to the Princess and Praxi.