Split from everyone loves a party


“Yes, I agree. Though, you have me so entertained that I never got your name… I'm not sure I should leave with a man when I don't know his name.”

“You don’t know my name yet, and still you should leave with me this instant” was his immediate reply.

“That’s better…”

“Yes it is. My name Is Venus.” He then gave in after they entered the hall and the noise relented some what after the doors flung shut behind them. “A couple doors down should do nicely. The building billed massive parties like this all the time and so it wasn’t surprising that nearby there were large plush rooms that were conveniently vacant. He pushed open the door he pointed to and then yes it was what he was hoping for. It would definitely do for a small private party for two.

He said as he flipped one of the three switches lighting the room with a nice dim effect. “ So I believe you wanted to interrogate me Miss Kane? Though I have a feeling your questions are going to make my curiosity grow.” Venus let his innuendo slide into a questionable ‘did he mean that how I think he did’ manner. He would move to blatant depending on how she did or didn’t take it.

He smiled at her as his eyes did a subtle once over and went and took a set on a leather love seat he twisted so that there would be room for her to sit if she liked to.

Rolling her eyes with a light laugh at his response, Jax nodded in agreement despite the fact that the lessening noise would have allowed her to speak. Then she heard his name and she looked at him in surprise, but waited as she moved with him to the door he chose, the silence and absence of prying eyes a welcome haven. The thought of whether he was more planet or goddess crossed her mind and she couldn’t stop the tilt of her mouth.

She pursed her lips in a puckish smile. “Oh, don’t think of it as an interrogation, I prefer to call it friendly quiz…” Jaxon had definitely caught his tone and had seen his eyes before he sat, and in a split second decision, she decided to play along. “And if your curiosity isn’t already quite large I will have to put forth more effort.” She smiled, suddenly realizing which Venus he must be named after.

Moving to the space next to him, she sat, tucked an ankle under her and turned toward him, her arm folded to rest on the back of the seat, looking for all the world like a fae creature perching on the space before returning to her home inside a flower. Her dark hair had been curled but left down to run riot across her back, her complexion in the dim light and warm colors looking less like moonlight and more like peaches and cream, and next to him on the couch she seemed smaller than usual.

Jaxon let her eyes run over him briefly, similar to the way he had done to her. He was younger than she had first thought, closer to twenty than thirty-five, though it was hard to tell with his other features. Jaxon knew she should try to get control over her strange attraction to the unique looking ones, her interest in a large red man might be pushing it a bit, but she couldn't help it. And he was being so much fun she couldn't bear to pull herself away back to the stress and boredom of the party. A teasing tone in her voice, she peered at him through bright eyes. “Are you prepared for my ardent and boundless curiosity?” Her tone was slightly impertinent, but not so much so to be offensive.

“And if your curiosity isn’t already quite large I will have to put forth more effort.”

A pleased was Venus’s less then subtle response “mmm.” He might be able to get along with Jaxon just fine.

“Are you prepared for my ardent and boundless curiosity?” Her tone was slightly impertinent, but not so much so to be offensive.

"Ardent and boundless?" he tapped his bottom lip as if considering if he were truly ready and then nodded. “I do believe I am." His tail was the only part of him that let the physical intrigue show in him, it was being very cat-ish instead of the typical monkey tail of spastic randomness. It twitched and swung back in forth to the tick tock beat of his heart. This little vixen might find herself in trouble if she kept going line for line with Venus.

He watched her patiently and was on his end trying to figure out the stem of her need to know what the mutant was all about, though he would in time explain that it was merely his own view that she was getting. His arm lay across the back arch of the couch leaving his fingers close to her neck. He began toying with one of her curls absentmindedly a brush on her bare neck might have been an accident but the reoccurring mishap might have been more then coincidence.

He tilted his head at the pixie turned human and smiled eagerly, she was already on the hook, now he just had to reel her in gently.

Laughing softly, her eyes hinting that he couldn’t possibly be ready, Jaxon’s chuckle was brought up short and she blinked slowly in surprise as she noticed the tail. She hadn’t seen his back and had somehow missed the fact that he had one until it started twitching in her peripheral vision. She stared at it for a moment but after a flurry of confused emotions passed over her face she settled on humor and looked at Venus again.

With a glance and a smirk at him, she ignored his hand, not stopping it from playing with her hair and indirectly her- she did love to have her hair played with. “Interesting… You aren’t even going to ask for anything in return for my questions?” Her smile broadened showing her teeth as her head tilted to the side, “No ‘quid pro quo’ for little Clarice? No truth-or-dare version?...” Jax rolled her eyes with a mock sigh and pretended to have gotten the upper hand on him. “This is going to be easier than I thought!”

With a wink, she tilted her head, staring into the distance for a moment while she thought of which question she wanted to ask first. The tail definitely would be called out, but right now she was more interested in the fact that there were several hims in the ballroom. “Did someone slip me something, or are there quite a few people in there who look just like you? Why is that? How many are there…”

Jaxon was getting quite involved, leaning towards him slightly, her eyes sparkling with intrigue and fascination.

“Interesting… You aren’t even going to ask for anything in return for my questions?” “No ‘quid pro quo’ for little Clarice? No truth-or-dare version?...” “This is going to be easier than I thought!”

He shrugged his shoulders slightly. “ earlier I mentioned that I might have some questions of my own, and I didn’t quite say I would bare my soul, and while the truth or dare is intriguing, I am a bit more direct in what I want.”

“Did someone slip me something, or are there quite a few people in there who look just like you? Why is that? How many are there…”

He shook his head. “I was the first one with the courage to approach you and the other guys might have resorted to some sort of pills but I have no need for the sort of thing. And your vision is quite fine. I actually look like one of them. I mentioned that some were more talented then I am. Well, My brother Neptune.” Abyss’s name might have been a dead give away, he was surprised that the news hadn’t informed her of the big red extremists that reeked havoc when they felt like it, being involved with a anti-human mutant group but he wasn’t complaining. “His mutation gifted him with six copies of himself… we started out as voices in his head actually. He also has the lovely knack for opening voids…they are kind of like black holes…portals that give us access to a place not of this world. He was the more talented one I was specifically referring too.”

His fingers stopped bothering with her hair and he was more brushing her neck softly then playing with it. The progress was slow but steady. He would stop the moment she said to but until then his fingers would play Louis and Clark and see how far they got before they were in trouble. Still in the safety of the dark forest of her hair he was pretty confident that he was safe.

Nodding in agreement and understanding, Jaxon was a mostly honest person and would probably censor herself as much as he did his own answers, she felt that was fair. She gave up on her minor jokes and shifted closer, listening to his answer. “Well, I hope you will tell me if I ask something inappropriate…” Tilting her head, she felt his fingers on her skin now, and granted him access to the sensitive spot where her neck joined the back of her skull.

She waited letting him finish, despite the urge to interrupt. “My questions seem to make me need more answers.” Jaxon’s mirth was directed more at herself now, and she leaned more into the couch, and unintentionally against his hand.

Jaxon had learned long ago that it made her uncomfortable to see people she knew on the news and had since started getting her news from the internet, reading only stories that interested her. And until a few months ago, mutants hadn’t been one of her interests. Her family hadn’t stayed in New York during the Registration and the camps, feeling safer staying with her Aunt and Uncle in Maine. Since that time, the media had been trying to backpedal on its previous harsh criticisms of mutants, now being fairly gentle with the topic. So she was fairly naive about mutant relations and who was who. One of the reasons she had come to this event was to learn more.

With a flirtatious tilt to her mouth Jax had to say it. “If all your brothers are as smooth and cute as you, I think you must have fan girls around every corner.” Her eyes shifted slightly, and she caught sight of his tail again. Watching it as she spoke, Jaxon was quite entertained. “So you are a power and a mutant… Do you ever wish you weren’t?” While she was talking her hand had reached out and was now hovering above his tail, as if waiting for his permission before touching it. Her curiosity had gotten the better of her and she couldn’t resist. "And I think you have to tell me about this..."

“Well, I hope you will tell me if I ask something inappropriate…”

“Of course, though I doubt there is much that could be taboo for me to tell you. We don’t hide much about our selves, my brothers and I. what about you? Any super powers I should now about?” He raised an eyebrow speculatively. Normally he might rule out the possibility but it would explain some of the curiosity and more than explain the reason she was willing to walk away with someone that could toss her to the moon. His fingers played with the back of her neck now flirting with the line between tickling and caressing.


“My questions seem to make me need more answers.”

“As they should, we are hardly talking about a common knowledge subject. It is easy to discuss these sorts of thins with someone open and unafraid. You don’t necessarily have to stay polite, but by all means stay bold.”


“If all your brothers are as smooth and cute as you, I think you must have fan girls around every corner.”

“Ah, well my brothers get by and Mercury did oddly well tonight, but we cant all be so in tune with what might please a woman. I suppose there might be.” Venus glanced around the room as if looking for one.


“So you are a power and a mutant… Do you ever wish you weren’t?”

“hmmm there are times when it might come in handy to blend into a crowd I suppose but then again it is easier when the crowd parts for you. There is also the effort to keep my strength in check with those that aren’t quite as sturdy as others. It isn’t a problem , but when you could as easily pick a tree as a flower, well you just keep your self how hard you turn a knob or open a door.”



"And I think you have to tell me about this..."

His tail touched her hand and then coiled up her arm and then back down. Leaving the tip of it near her hand.

“Not much to tell there. I have a tail. It is prehensile and sometimes has a mind of its own. To be honest I don’t think a lot of people notice but it is pretty easy to read our mood by our tails. It is a subconscious thing for us and others don’t really think to relate as most cant.”

Jaxon chose to delay answering his first question, thinking about how she wanted to answer that, while she responded to him. She couldn’t hide the fact that she tensed, her small movements going still for a few moments though.

She broke when he told her to stay bold, a sharp laugh popping up and reminding her that she was safe. Odd that she felt safer with this man, a huge red mutant, than she did in a crowd of people she knew. But safe was a relative term, and lately nothing had seemed safe. “I will do my best to be outlandishly and inappropriately bold.” She said with a smile. After all, how hard could it be, when she had more sequins in her closet than a drag queen...

When he mentioned being in tune with women her nose scrunched in silent amusement. About to comment, she was distracted as the tail wound around her arm and back again. Jax touched it with the tips of her fingers when it settled, tickling it back. It was almost like a weird pet the way he described it… almost sweet. “I can see how parting crowds would be handy, and you seem to have a lot of control. I haven’t been worried.” His strength had been obvious on the dance floor but not harmful, and though his size was still clear, he had been gentle all evening.

“I wish I had more control…” Sighing, knowing she had to say it, she turned her attention back to his first question. “As for super powers…” Jaxon swallowed, hesitating, but she answered. Fair was fair. “I really wouldn’t call them super… more like scary.” She had just had a nightmare episode, and hadn’t been able to sleep last night, afraid to do it again. Remembering the incident she added in a whisper, "Or crazy."

“I will do my best to be outlandishly and inappropriately bold.”

He almost did something in appropriately bold to preface that statement of hers in answer. But he settled for changing what his idle hand was doing. “Sounds like a plan.” His hand slid around to the front of her neck and then down just at the base of her neck he switched to a single finger and began to absentmindedly trace figures on her bare shoulder.

“I can see how parting crowds would be handy, and you seem to have a lot of control. I haven’t been worried.”

“That’s good; you have no reason to be. I can be gentle when I need to. It came with time and effort. It is only fun to replace the everyday fixtures of life so often though it does keep things fresh an it’s a good excuse to redecorate.”

“I wish I had more control…”

His eyebrow raised and for a moment his hand paused in its quest to explore.

“As for super powers…”

He wondered momentarily if there was going to be a punch line.

“I really wouldn’t call them super… more like scary.” "Or crazy."

“Crazy, scary, power has the most potential; Control comes with time and practice. You cant get better if you don’t use it at all. Shall we have show as well as tell?” His eyes held new interest she was at first a simple conquest for a fling that he was humoring….this could turn potentially into a reoccurring conquest. His favorite was kinky powers, but some powers couldn’t be applied. So they would see.

“I guess I could go first if you like? Since I haven’t really proved word with action.”

Aware of what his hand was doing, his word brought to mind the image of him picking out color schemes and furniture, for some reason while wearing a little white apron. She laughed. “I’d bet watching you redecorate would be very interesting.” Hopefully he didn’t really use an apron, because that might be a little too weird for her.

With a sigh, Jax knew there was no getting around it now that they were talking about powers. She mentally cursed herself for having to say anything about her powers, she could have just left it at ‘not super.’

He seemed somewhat interested in her power, how could he not be with that sort of description. She had looked away from him at some point, not sure what reaction she had been expecting, but when he said something about potential, her eyes moved back to him.

“I suppose you are right, but it is hard to practice something you can’t show anyone…” Jaxon had been hiding the fact that she was a mutant for a little over 6 months, not trying to use them, but trying to suppress them. “There isn’t really someplace where you can go and practice without being seen, and this is New York, there are people everywhere…” Jaxon was a little annoyed at that, though it had previously been something she loved about New York. “There are days when I think I’m either a mutant or the devil.” She tried to laugh at herself at that; usually the idea of her being the devil would be ridiculous, but her powers somehow made that seem possible.

Show and tell. Jaxon was in the process of shaking her when he offered to go first. “Well… I guess we could.” She was hesitant, but willing. After all, if anyone would understand, another mutant would, especially one that looked a bit like a demon himself.

~~“I’d bet watching you redecorate would be very interesting.”

“Well, I think I can get the furniture moved a bit faster then most.”

~~“I suppose you are right, but it is hard to practice something you can’t show anyone “There isn’t really someplace where you can go and practice without being seen, and this is New York, there are people everywhere…”

“Stop by the sanctuary any time you like, we have our own facilities. Though there is also central park. So what if others are around. It is who you are whether it might get you into a tabloid or not. You should be proud of who you are. ”

~~ “There are days when I think I’m either a mutant or the devil.”

“hmmm, big, red, tail, black goatee…yeah, I’m sure I couldn’t relate on the devil part. Not that I think being either both would be so bad.”

~~“Well… I guess we could.”

Venus smiled as she agreed; he spun off of the couch and looked around for something that wouldn’t be missed too much. He made way to a sturdy little metal waste basket and took the plastic bag out tying it and putting it where the trash can was. With the slightest effort he smashed the can flat and then began to roll his palm together like a child might shape clay. The metal responded and rolled into a compact little ball. He then poked the top of the mass to make the top form two rounded shapes he then pinched the bottom into a point and smashed it once more until the metal was a small compacted heart. He showed her the heart and smiled.

“I would give it to you, but it was made out of a trash can so the sentiment is kind of lost.”
He paced his way back to the couch and smiled. He opens his palm to show his little arts and crafts project.

Then there is also this. He put his pinky out and bent down lifting the couch she was sitting on without the slightest resistance. He set it back down and returned to his seat. He then presented the empty room to her with a flourished wave signifying that the floor was hers.

Chuckling at his responses, Jax logged that tidbit about the sanctuary away in her mind. She had heard of the safe house, but hadn’t realized that they had those kinds of facilities. She didn’t know anyone had things like that. She would definitely have to drop by and see what they had now that she had been invited. “You are with the Sanctuary? I’ll come by sometime and do that…” She would not however be caught by anyone out in public, at least not yet. She wasn’t ready.

His comment about how he looked made her roll her eyes. “I don’t know, you look kind of obvious. Don’t you think the devil would hide in something a bit more innocent looking?” Jaxon made a motion with one hand indicating the line of her body as it was laid out on the couch, her eyes twinkling with humor. Jaxon wasn’t fond of being overtly sexual, and her movements came off as what they were- light and natural.

Her eye widened when he moved suddenly, surprised by his speed, and watched his actions in selecting the trashcan with interest. When he crushed it she was impressed, the lack of effort astounding, though his artistic effort even more so. He didn’t seem the type, and when he presented her with the little heart she laughed with a still somewhat childish exuberance, her hand coming up slightly to cover her mouth. Still smiling over it, she was about to reach out to touch the little metal thing when he surprised a yelp out of her.

After being lifted in the air, she looked down at him with a grin and a shake of her head. Once she and the couch were safely back on the floor, Jaxon spoke. “That was amazing! Though I still want that little heart… It is Valentines after all, and I don’t care what it is made of.”

Then it was very suddenly Jaxon’s turn to show him her own powers. “Oh… okay. Let me think of something harmless.” With a deep breath of preparation, she tried to think of something small and safe. Speaking more to herself she whispered, “I hope this works…” Deciding to fixate on a cat, she hoped nothing would go wrong. Concentrating on the shape and size, Jaxon’s face showing the effort with a bitten lip and narrowed eyes, she pulled on the power she felt in the back of her mind, trying to unravel only a string of the tangled mess of ability she kept locked there.

The trickle of power started slowly, dark wisps of matter flowing to a spot in front of the couch. Slowly a furry creature, about the size of a large cat, began to fade into existence.

Though still incorporeal, the creature seemed aware and was looking around, it’s posture a bit curious and a bit afraid. As the flow of power grew and became more steady so did the creature. In under a minute, a weird little half cat- half sheep was investigating the room. Its front feet had hands like a raccoon, while the back feet had hooves, the rest of the body looking like a fluffy cat with horns coming out of its red-eyed head. The dark little creature opened its mouth showing rows of shark-like teeth when it started to chew on the leg of a table.

With a sigh of release, she felt the pressure ease once the creature was solid, and she blocked the tendril of power, shoving it back. Lifting the one foot that was on the ground, she settled it next to her when she saw the little teeth, and shifted nervously. Looking at Venus with a bit of worry and apprehension in her eyes, she gave him a shaky smile, her tone of voice unsure and nervous. “Tadah… A creepy little demon.”

“You are with the Sanctuary? I’ll come by sometime and do that…”

“You should, it would be good for you to mingle with more than just the guy that has ulterior motives.”

“I don’t know, you look kind of obvious. Don’t you think the devil would hide in something a bit more innocent looking?”

‘Obvious? biblically has been his style in my mind, he seems very in your face a bout it though I suppose you have the right of it, how could it not be sinful to be able to look innocent and that mischievous at once.”


“That was amazing! Though I still want that little heart… It is Valentines after all, and I don’t care what it is made of.”

He happily handed over the moments worth of work and effort, it was indeed valentines day and her being here without a date was simply wrong, however where some might concentrate on that he simply saw an opportunity.


“Oh… okay. Let me think of something harmless.” Venus nodded encouragingly not wanting to distract her with words incase she neded to concentrate.
“I hope this works…”

“You can do it, relax and succeed, we have all the time in the world.”


His interest was peeked as the ghostly form took on more and more substance and confidence. And it reminded him of her.

“Tadah… A creepy little demon.”

“at-a-girl, see that wasn’t too bad, and he or she is beautiful, that is quite the talent and I think that we have a bit more in common then you might think. Though I wouldn’t say its creepy so much as misunderstood.” He looked thoughtfully at the little “demon”. His tail wiggled at the creature to seee if he could bait it into a game.

His gaze then returned to Jaxon and more so her nervous expression. “ what’s the matter? You did great! You power could teach you a lesson you know. At first the little one was incorporeal an looked nervous. But as it took on the form more and more it was more and more solid. You have nothing to lose from taking control of yourself and nothing to benefit by not training yourself.”

He sized her up once more and momentarily put aside his hunt. “ I would tell someone that had a gun the same thing. There is no point in carrying it around if you don’t know how to use it. The one that will end up hurt the most is yourself if you don’t. But I relent; you know you need to know more or you wouldn’t be here with me.” He smirked slightly. “or would you?”

Smirking at the idea of him having ulterior motives, Jaxon plucked the little heart from his hand with a grateful touch of her fingers to his wrist. “Everyone has ulterior motives; I have some for you, you have some for me, the people out there…” She waved a hand at the door before continuing, “aren’t here out of the goodness of their hearts despite the charity involved. But I am okay with you using me, and you seem fine with me using you.” She grinned, the slight inflection over the word 'using' hinting that she was playing with him again.

Laughing slightly at his complement she shrugged a shoulder upwards looking at him over it, before dropping the small act with a wink. She knew how she was, and how people perceived her, and Jax accepted it. She was a handful, and it worked for her. Things might change in the future, but who knows what the future holds.

She had heard his words of encouragement, but hadn’t responded, just having the faith of someone else was new to her, at least in this aspect, and she didn’t dare say anything to ruin it. Watching the creature with apprehension as it eyed Venus’s tail, Jaxon made a face indicating her displeasure with the little beast.

Jax had little to no control of it, so it bounced towards the couch, heedless of her. Scooting away from the edge of the couch, closer to the back, she made sure her feet were well away and her dress covered her legs, small protection against the dangerous teeth. Seeing it make a hop, the small mouth snapping at his tail, Jaxon held in the gasp but not her words.. “Oh, please be careful!… These things aren’t always nice.”

Jaxon knew he was right, but that didn’t stop her from being afraid of her own powers. She had seen these creatures do more than chew on a desk like an untrained puppy. “I know, in my head, you are right but, not all of them are small and fluffy…”

“The others, they are…” Jaxon’s thoughts tracked back to the more recent appearances; the skeleton-porcupine-beast, the monkey-wolf, and other strange reptiles that had invaded her life and scared her into insomnia made it hard to think of them as misunderstood. “…They are bigger and meaner. They scare me.”

The little demon was still trying to bite the twitching tail, and it started to make odd noises, almost like a bat. Shaking her head she added. “If I could control them… I know I won’t learn unless I try, and I know you are right, I need more practice...” With a laugh she added, “I think I will be going to the Sanctuary sooner than I thought.” Jaxon met his eyes, feeling somewhat pathetic. Even to her own ears her words had sounded like excuses, but she didn’t have any other reason except fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of rejection by her parents, fear of herself and the beasts she could make… But she was going to go, and she was going to take his advice. Learn to use it.

The demon had waited and leapt when the tail was within reach, it’s teeth clamping down on the wiggling body part.

. “Everyone has ulterior motives; I have some for you, you have some for me, the people out there “aren’t here out of the goodness of their hearts despite the charity involved. But I am okay with you using me, and you seem fine with me using you.”


“Well now, more of that boldness I do so enjoy. I suppose if you are inviting me to take advantage of you, I can hardly be held accountable.” He smirked. And then his attention was returned to the little bugger at hand. Or tail.



“Oh, please be careful!… These things aren’t always nice.”


“ It doesn’t, seem to be behaving any worse than a cat.” His tail shook and danced and paused and then wiggled around some more after it started to move in.”


“I know, in my head, you are right but, not all of them are small and fluffy…”

“The others, they are…”. “…They are bigger and meaner. They scare me.”


“Tell me about the others, if things get to out of hand back at the house, I will be there to keep these guys in line, The bigger meaner ones will learn a lesson about who they are messing with, you got this trust me.”


“If I could control them… I know I won’t learn unless I try, and I know you are right, I need more practice...” “I think I will be going to the Sanctuary sooner than I thought.”


“ sounds like a fun night in, but while we are here and the little one is already harassing my tail, we might as well start. Do you feel a connection to them? Could you control them if you tried? That certainly isn’t how it worked with Abyss and the rest of us. But then we are sentient and I am not convinced this little guy is.” He looked back up and was about to say or ask something else when his eyes widened.

“Ouch!”

He rolled his tail around the little beast like a constrictor might and then began to wiggle him back and forth. His tail would wrestle with it and hopefully come out no worse for wear. Again it hadn’t been terrible or malicious just responding to its nature. Jaxon had something to learn about these things indeed.