11492/Evening in Cairo

Evening in Cairo
Date of Scene:	07 June 2022
Location:	Hotel Garden - Cairo, Egypt
Synopsis:	While Crush enjoyed the hotel gardens i9n Cairo, Richard Stadler happens her and they sit and talk for a bit. He gets her to drop her guard and she shares too much... oh well.
Cast of Characters:	Xiomara Rojas, Richard Stadler

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Xiomara Rojas has posed:
The sun was hanging low in the sky, not quite dark, just barely creeping into dusk. Back at the hotel, most of the kids were preparing for the night, which is why Crush was out in the hotel gardens away from the hustle. She didn't require sleep, though on occasion she would do so anyway, just to appear more normal. In this case she didn't trust the hotel beds to be strong enough to withstand her tossing and turning, and that was what always happened when she slept. The nightmares.

Sitting on a stone bench amongst the natural Egyptian plants, she was reading a small booklet on the museum they had recently visited. So many amazing artifacts of the past, and the mummies had really been the best. Seeing the facial reconstruction had been the highlight, just like Madison had thought it would be.

Richard Stadler has posed:
"Hey." The was a voice from in front of her, and if she looked up, there was one of the teachers from the trip, Stadler. His clothing had changed, it look liked, to some work out gear, and he... didn't look to be in the /best/ shape. Breathing was hard, and his forehead was covered in sweat. "You okay out here? I thought most the students would be in doors enjoying the hotel room by now. God knows staying on my own back in High School was the highlight of these trips." He says, before shaking his head. "Sorry, do you mind if I sit down over here?" He indicates a bench across from her.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Whether she heard him approaching, his footfalls against the stone or not wasn't clear, but when he addressed her, Crush looked up slowly and just stared for a minute. She still wore her white tank top with tan shorts, but presently her feet were bare, and the thick black chain was still wrapped around her waist.

He was in fact talking to her, there wasn't anyone else around, so clearly it was her. Seeing he looks like she might pass out any moment she gestures toward the bench with a quick, "Go for it."

That's when she takes the time to formulate in her head the answer to his prior question. "Uh..." yep, good start. "I'm fine out here." Better, keep going. "I... prefer to be away from the hype. Don't know how to be careful enough to join it yet, think there was a water balloon fight happenin or somethin like that."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Richard Stadler nods gratefully, not quite collapsing onto the bench. He's got a bottle of water he obviously just bought, opening the cap and taking a long swig of it. "Thank you." He breathes once it's over, before leaning back. "God, I don't know what I was thinking. Try not to age if at all possible. Can't recommend it." He says, before taking just a few moments to catch his breath, and keep silent as she tries to find the words to explain what she was doing out there.

"Fair enough. Nothing wrong with solitude... well, in moderation, I mean." He notes, before cocking his head slightly. "I assume being careful means that there... might be some strength issues at play? I know you mentioned... well. That you were a different..." He tries, before shaking his head. "Sorry, still a bit new with all this."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Folding the booklet in half, Crush shoves it into the pocket of her shorts before looking back up at the newest teacher. She hadn't seen him before, only heard his name from the list of teachers on the trip. He seemed okay, but she'd known numerous people who /seemed/ okay, then tried to stab her in the back... some even actually physically tried.

"You're a teacher," she says with a shrug of her shoulders. "You got access to my files at the school, so... don't mind telling ya since no one else is around."

Bending down, she pulls a water bottle from under the bench and twists the top off. Not having been thinking, she twists the entire top of the bottle off. This is nothing new to her, so she just takes a drink and continues. "I'm just learnin how to pull my strength, but yeah, strengths an issue," she snorts, then a broad grin spreads across her face. He was being so careful, it was almost cute.

"I'm an alien," she states bluntly. "Half-Czarnian, half human, I think human." She shrugs again. "We got strength like Superman."

Richard Stadler has posed:
There's a reason to be careful, of course. New territory, and like hell if he would be the sterotypical curmudgeon when it came to accepting new people. He nods, once, slowly, as she mentions files. "I'm sure I do, but I didn't have time to read your jacket before I left here. Hardly had any time, really; Doctor MacIntyre just hired me. I'm in the deepend here, just treading water the best as I can, and it is not enjoyable. But I did know Happy Harbor was unique when I applied, so it isn't too suprising."

He watches her rip the entire top of the bottle off with raised eyebrows. "Lord, you aren't kidding with that, are you? I suppose this is the first time I've met a Czarnian. Half-Czarnian, at least. Are you related to... devil, what was it- Kryptonian's at all? I can't lie, wondering how parents like yours must have met."

A pause. "Which may be going a bit too far. Again, deep end, and I really should wait until I can do a bit of a literature review back in New York."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Eyeing the bottle for a moment, Crush looks back to him. "I keep forgetting to think before I do something," she holds up the bottle to show it off, not really proud just offering a better view of the damage. "That's the problem, it's just natural to me, so I gotta think before I do anything."

She takes another drink of the water, actually liking the way water tastes. "There ain't that many Czarnian's left," she then states, a little more quietly, subdued, with just the slightest hint of anger to the tone. Taking slow breath, she shoves it down. "We're not related to Kryptonians, that's Superman. We're something different, what's left of us any way."

It's at that point she shoves another wave of anger down, deep into the pit in her stomach, but says nothing more related to her parents beyond, "Don't know my real mom." While staring down at the stone walkway as if its very presence insults her.

Richard Stadler has posed:
Stadler gives a slow nod, still eyeing the ripped up bottle. "I... imagine that must be difficult, certainly. I can't say I've had the experience of having to tone down my strength on something... be careful with what I'm doing, that's more of a familiar shade, however. And... ahh." It had felt if he might have wandered into a minefield at the moment, and trying to step in the right spots.

"I think I've gotten a bit too... personel, with the questions. I like to investigate things, sometimes, dig for information, and sometimes it can get me into very delicate situations. I'm sorry for that." How does one approch that beyond sorry? 'Oh, that's too bad, I certainly hate to imagine it? Change of topic, probably the best way out of this.

"I suppose I really should learn about Kryptonians. Not one of the species of alien I've met, so far."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Just a little longer Crush stares at the stone path, if she were Kryptonian, she should make it explode with her eyes, but still, if looks could kill...

Once that moment passes she reigns it back in, and shoves the anger back down. It wasn't his fault her father was a complete and utter ass-hat. The only one to blame for that was her father, and to do that would mean acknowledging him, and that's something she refused to do.

Slowly looking back up she lifts her shoulders in a slight shrug again. "Nah, it ain't your fault," she says more calmly. "Most people, you can ask a simple question like that without worrying, me though... I don't talk about my birth parents, at all, ever."

"My adoptive parents though," she continues. "The ones that found me when I fell to earth, I'm coming round to being able to talk about them again... so don't blame yourself, it's me. I got issues."

Another drink of the water is taken before she sets the bottle on the bench beside her. "I've never met any of the Kryptonians either, but I think theirs like five of them now... so much for last one standing for Superman, right?" She snorts a small laugh. "I'm working with a group that're helping me learn to pull my strength, so I don't hurt anyone... never used to care about that, if I hurt someone or not, learning to care about it now too."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Crush could see Stadler visably relax as she moves to reign herself back in, letting out an almost silent hiss of breath that he had been holding in when he did it. "That's far enough. Again, it's my fault for scratching at the scab in the first place. Consider that a dropped issue. He says, before she mentions her adopted parents. "It's... that's good. Talking to your... I suppose 'real' parents, the ones that raised you, is a healthy thing. Lord knows I don't get enough time to talk to my own these days, and I can't have long with them left." He says. The smile is sad, but his voice, at least, is matter of fact. And at least the issue changes there.

"I'm just glad Superman has more from his world... countryman, what have you. Has to be a bit devasting to know you're the last, and that must take some of the burden off. Is this a group at school? Students..." He pauses. "Government?"

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
She hadn't been certain until he let that breath out, but he was actually nervous, hesitant, and sorry. Crush wasn't used to that, someone actually meaning what they say, feeling something more than anger, hatred or complete indifference toward her. His reaction causes one brow to lift slightly, before she works through in her own head that it was all real.

"The Titans," she again states perhaps far too bluntly, like it was just something you said, no hang ups over it being a world wide known super group. "Also gettin help from Ms. O'Connail, and a couple of the other students."

Parents. The word kept echoing in her head. Everyone had them, but to hear that this old guy still had his, that was a surprise. "Spend all the time you can with your parents," she then says, looking right at his face, catching his eyes with her own red eyes if she can. "Every minute you can be with em, do it, cause when it's over, it's over and there's no going back. You'll miss em, there'll be a void in you, and you'll pretend it's all the natural course of things, but nothing will ever replace em."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Richard Stadler keeps the smile on his face,, cetainly, the sad one that at least is grateul for the knowledge. "Oh, don't worry about me. I prepare for it. Mentally, I mean. Knowing that the time I have isn't going to be nearly enough, but there's nothing I can do about it. Not really. That was one hope for this job, though. There's some open time before the Fall Semester starts, so I've got time to head up to TC and visit them for a bit. Help around the house; dad has trouble with that these days." He says, quiet for a moment. "But.. ahh... yeah. Don't have to worry about me. Loss and I are old friends."

He's quiet for a few more moments, before taking a breath and looking back up. "You mentioned the Titans? Working with them? You know some pretty famous people, do you know that? It's going to take a bit of getting used to, being among the extraordinary like this."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Seeming content that he got it, that he understood the importance of accepting death and preparing for it, Crush offers one curt nod. She was perhaps too young to know so much about death, the requirement of learning to accept it, but that's how life was for some people.

"I don't really work with em yet," she admits with a smirk. "They're helpin to train me, cause right now if I tried to help, I'd likely punch a bad guy over a building... that's what happened in the training simulation. I don't think much about their fame, cause they're just people like anyone else."

She snorts another laugh, remembering the program actually accepting her level of strength and that guy just soaring up into the air and over the bank that was being robbed. She wasn't supposed to like that, but she did. She knew what she could do to people, and in her mind some people deserved it, the Titans on the other hand didn't think anyone deserved free flight services.

"So uh... that mean you're just a normal dude?" She then asks just as bluntly as she seems to always be. "I mean that's okay, normal people are cool, just know most of the teachers at the school got something else going."

Richard Stadler has posed:
The curt nod and the way she talked about death was... uncomfortable to think about. Aliens, certainly, but she wouldn't be her if she wasn't high school age, and that was far too young to have that attitude. Almost a tragedy, and she could see his mouth open for a moment, before closing. Too much picking at scabs already today. If she was going to leave it where it lies, he was glad to simply keep it there.

"Still, they're helping train you. That's almost like meeting a celebrity and telling someone you're just getting vocal lessons; it's still in a relationship with them. And it sounds like... no offense, of course, but you can use the training. Control and percision are two very good skills to have in dangerous situations, I imagine."

This time, the smile is a bit more rueful at her question. "Yep! Compared to people like that and some of the things I've heard, I'm as normal as you could expect. But it's something to help young people, esspecially ones with some extraordinary skills. I'm honestly glad Doctor Macintyre listened to my begging. I suppose my grades were high enough in Metropolis, or the reviews from my employers may have impressed." He snorts. "Then again, with what they pay teachers, perhaps it was because I was willing to work for the wage paid and free lunch."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Retrieving the water again, Crush glances toward a young couple walking along the path. They weren't coming deeper into the garden, just moving from one part of the hotel to another and using the garden to do it. More American tourists, likely a rich and spoiled couple, had everything they ever wanted. She considered sneering at them, but remembered that this was a teacher across from her so instead, turned her attention back to him.

"I don't got good social skills either," comes her next admission. "Spent uh... like five years on the streets. Before that was just the adoptive parents, so not a lot a chance to learn how to deal with people. On the streets it's punch or be punched."

Switching gears she then asks, "What do you teach?" Before adding, "And normal is relative, either you got abilities, skills, magic or something like that, or you don't."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Richard Stadler looks to his side, following Crush's gaze with a bit of confusion, seeing the couple move through for a moment. Passing curiousity? Maybe, but at least she seemed to have that anger she had shown before in check for it. He cocked his head as she mentioned the reason social skills were lacking. "Ahh..." He pauses for a moment. Had to be asked. "I get you; I've seen some rough places before where things aren't as safe as you'd like. You... have a place now, though, right? You mentioned this was after your adopted parents." He didn't /quite/ wince, but he certainly felt like it. And of course she changed gears, and she can tell his eyes light up a little. "Oh, Biology! Really interesting subject, honestly... though I suppose I haven't 'taught' it before; just got out of CUNY a bit ago with a few teaching courses, but I am /optimisitc/ about where this might ago. And honestly, biology would probably be my best skill over here, really. Nothing compared to what I've seen from some of the other staff around here." He leans forward a bit. "Have you thought about college?"

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
With the couple now out of the garden, Crushes attention was fully back on Richard, Mr. Stadler, whatever. Usually she didn't much care for adults, they always acted like they knew everything, and were always ready to correct every little behavior. He wasn't like that, he was more curious about things than out to teach her about everything.

"I live in the dorms," she offers, chewing a little at her bottom lip. Might as well just spit it out. "My adoptive parents were killed when I was fourteen, some illegal drug crap, so I just ran. Was alone until what... last year?" She has to take a moment to work the math in her head, then nods.

"Yeah, I started up at Happy Harbor last year, so..." another shrug, it seemed her reaction of indifference when in fact there was more to it. She just locked it up with everything else. "Ms. MacIntyre agreed to let me stay in the dorms so long as I kept up with my studies, meaning B minus or better. Didn't get into any fights, a.k.a, no punching the other kids, and that's been the hardest, cause some of those brats deserve to be punched. I also gotta stay outta trouble, which is another hard one cause well... most-a what I know is trouble."

There, it was all out there now. There might be a few other things in her file, but for the most part she'd covered it all at this point. "Biology," she then says. "Animal, plant or human? Or all of it? I'm supposed to take two more terms of science, which bores the hell outta me, does Biology count for that you think?"

Richard Stadler has posed:
Well, that's what Stadler gets for picking at scabs, isn't it? Dead at 14? After a bad set of natural parents? There's a look at her, a bit of a stunned look, trying to evaluate just how much hardship a girl like that could go through and /not/ be filled with incandascent rage at the world. Doctor Macintyre did good work, it seemed.

He cleared his throat, slightly, nodding. "Again... sorry for bringing that up. I... suppose I should just be glad Doctor Macintyre got you enrolled here. That, and managed to keep you out of fights. Always a danger, there. Rarely worth it, unless you're really backed up aganist a wall. Then..." He says, holding his hands up, and shurging. "Still. You're staying out of trouble, and I hope I can help." He says, slaping a hand aganist a knee. "I'm /certain/ I can talk to the Headmistress to see about fufilling a scinece credit. Hey, if it's good enough for Ann Arbor, it has to be good enough here!" He does seem excited at the prospect. "Now I can't promise you it won't be boring. I generally do a good survey course, but my specality is human. Microbiology, which we won't get in /nearly/ as much, but certainly human physiology. The urinary tract, the way nuerons are formed and make connects, the way the thymus produces white blood cells..."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Oh gods it /was/ going to be boring.

How was any of that important to Crushes future? She most certainly was not science material, though really that wasn't entirely true. She was not stupid by any means, everything she read she remembered, no matter how boring it was. She would likely make a great scientist if she could just get over hating everything in the world... not everything any more, mostly everything.

"I uh... I can tell you're um... passionate about your chosen area of expertise," she stammers out, trying to say something nice while at the same time wanting to scream 'dears gods no, not on summer break!'. "That'll make ya good teacher of it, even if its er... boring as fuc...dge."

It was then that something sort of crossed her mind that never had... how different was she from humans, on the inside that is. Her mother was supposedly human, which is why she had to eat sometimes, and maybe sleep a little from time to time, but how different was she on the inside.

"So uh..." she begins then, considering, then just goes for blunt, it's really what she's best at. "You interested in finding out how different I am from humans, cause I am."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Why it was the /most important/ thing to anyone's future, obviously! At least to hear how Stadler seemed excited about explaning things. The smile was still on his face as she mentioned how passionate he was about the field, and he only looks a /little/ crestfallen when she mentions that it's boring as a psuedo curse word. At least she hasn't actually said it. "Oh, I'm sure I'm not explaining it right; the lesson plan should go over it all, and we aren't going into anythig complicated. Maybe the fact that T-cells originate in the bone marrow and move toward the thymus, but I don't think we need to get into the difference between the CD4 or CD8 co-receptor types... maybe in an Honor's course?" He says, a bit distracted...

But brought back by her questions. "Ahh... I... well. Sad to say I'm not a... Lord, is there a such thing as xenobiologist these days? I'm certainly not a medical doctor. But..." He muses. "It might make for an interesting project. From what I understand, Doctor Macintyre has her MD. I could bring it up with her, if you're interested in persuing it."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
More rambling, but so passionate and then suddenly Crush finds herself actually listening and... interested.

"Wait... T-cells come from bone marrow?" Why was that interesting? He could probably hear it in the tone of her voice, that she was in fact not bored. "T-cells are part of the human immune system, right? What helps em not get sick or fight off illness? What does the thymus do with em?"

It was as much a shock to her as it was to him, but at the mention of xenobiology, there's a slight twitch to her right eye. "Yeah, probably not a good idea. Would be too dangerous for Dr. MacIntyre, or you, or anyone to go delving into Czarnian biology... was just a thought."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Richard Stadler gives a few quick nods. "Oh, certainly- well, not quite. What /become/ T-cells originate in the bone marrow; they're a larger type known as hematopoietic stem cells. It's formed during embryonic development. They'll go through a few more stages, but in a nutshell, we move," He says, bringing his hands to one side for emphasis, "over to multipotent progenitors... Basically they're the type of cells that can become a few different things. We then differenciate," He notes, moving his hands to a center point, "To common lymphoid progenitors, which /then/," His hand moves over to the other side. "Can be turned into a few different types of white blood cell. NK, B, or /T/ cells. They move up through the blood to the thymus, where they," He clasps his hands together, "/engraft/ onto the thymus itself, and become immature t-cells. In fact, the /reason/ they're called T-cells is because they come from the thymus!"

He pauses for a moment. "Well. It's not like we'd be..." He says, wincing, "vivisecting you. Horrible practice. But there are things we can do that have a low invasiveness. Blood samples, physical examination, skin cells. The types of things you'd have done at a doctor's office. It's up to you, but...."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Admittedly most of what he just said flies right over Crushes head, but she still listens intently. It was hard to fake disinterest when in fact learning anything new interested her, but there was something about how the inside of a person worked that grabbed her attention.

"Oh yeah, I'm taking your classes," she nods a few times. "Even if they don't count."

Taking the last drink of water from the bottle she crunches it up in her hand, literally, making it into a small of plastic that she tucks in her pocket. "Never been to a doctor," she states with a shrug, but then she looks right back at his face, trying to read it. He was still being perfectly open and honest, which still struck her as odd, but she accepted it.

"Uh... here's the thing," she finally says, way more quietly than normal. "I don't want ta draw attention from..." oh boy, just say it. "My real dad... he's still out there and... well last time he came by, he and Superman made some new craters on the moon. I'd like to learn more about myself, but... don't know if it's safe."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Richard Stadler , for his part, seems rather pleased at one of the students actually seeming to listen and want to take his class, clapping his hands once in emphasis! "Hah! I'll keep a spot open for you. Now just have to find about 19 more bright-eyed and bushy-tailed kids who get excited about School House Rock's Telegraph Line as I do. Up for the challenge- Oh, damn- gah, darn it. Pardon." He says, taking his water bottle himself, and draining it. "Forgot to hydrate, that's always important. You forget and then next thing you know your skin's dry and your face down in the desert- do you get heat stroke? Never mind, question for another time." He says, before she grows quiet.

"So. You're afraid that your... this person might decide to come around during an examination if he finds something's up." He pauses, before shaking his head. "So, it might take a few phone calls to ensure some security. My concern is that no one should be kept from medical care, from seeing a doctor, and from knowing how they tick. It's up to you in the end, and it might need preperation, planning, contingencies... but I'd hate for someone else to make that decision for you."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Knowing she couldn't help with finding nineteen other students, Crush focuses on his excitement over the whole thing with a broad grin on her face. Eager teacher was way better than one who just came to work, day after day, because they were basically programmed to rinse and repeat, and really didn't like their job.

"No, I don't get heat stroke," she answers at least that part of the excited babble, then moves on to dealing with the Lobo risk.

"He knows I'm here," she comments almost dryly, with a definite lingering of aggravation in the tone. "He's been by to try and kill me once..." okay that was too much information, but it had just slipped right out. She got to comfortable, too relaxed and it was just out there now.

The expression on her face changes first to surprise then the anger flashes through her eyes, making her look away to the plants again. Lock it up, get your guard back up, stop being so... weak. Make the decision for yourself, and if he comes back, kill him.

"I know nothing about myself or my people," she mutters as she destroys the plant with her stare. "He made sure of that by killing them all... so yeah, I wanna know more about me, even if it's just how I'm different from humans, and what might be the same."

Richard Stadler has posed:
"Oh, well. That's lucky, esspecially in this heat, and I really don't want to see any more teenagers forget to hydrate and collapse in the desert." He notes. And certainly, he could afford to be excited... litterally. There weren't many other teachers that simply had the freedom to disengage if they didn't feel like it, but Stadler was excited about teaching. Though... there were the dangers. Such as this.

"He's... already tried to kill you?" He says. "How... who the hell do you report that stuff to? The Justice League? The Avengers? That's..." He just shakes his head. "It... shouldn't happen. It's... a measure of injustice. I know the world is sometimes like that, beleive me, but it's still painful to see."

And at that, he pauses. He's silent for a long moment. Thoughtful about it. Then nods. "If you want to know more about you, then we'll find a way to get it done. It may take some time, but you have my word on that."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
The plant has thoroughly been murdered by Crushes glare, which allowed her the time to get herself locked back down. Czarnian anger was hard to fight, it was a racial trait, even if she didn't know that's what it was, but she fought it every day. In the past she just let it rage, but now she was trying to be something more, something better, and that meant not punching the teacher who thus far has been a really, really cool guy. It wasn't his fault her father was a monster, nor was it his fault she had that temper, so the plant knew her rage and Richard didn't.

"I don't normally talk bout him," she says more calmly, just a little trickle of irritation in her tone. "He's a bastard, heartless and cruel. Killed off every Czarnian he could, leaving so few... we're a dead people, just how he wanted it."

Slowly she turns her red eyes back to look across at Richard. "He an Superman have gone to blows a few times, neither wins, neither loses really, so there's no one to report it to," she then says plainly, quieter than her usual. "It is what it is, a part of life I deal with, the chance he'll return and I'll get ta punch him to the moon again."

That was more about her father than she'd shared with anyone, and why she did she had no idea. There was something almost comforting about this teacher, the way he talked, held himself... cared. It was the caring that struck her each and every time, and it was starting to sink in that people /did/ care.

"Don't matter how long it takes, so long as some day I know /something/. Right now, I just know what I've learned from the fights," she continues, sighing quietly. "I heal quick. Can't stab or shoot me most of the time, sometimes it gets through but then I just heal. I see different than humans do, can hear way better, like dog whistles and the like, and can smell the city from here."

There is a pause here, eyes searching his face for a minute, looking for something that she finds in his eyes. "I uh... a secret, something no one else knows... I mean no one." She leans a little closer, despite the distance between them. "I'm not as stupid as most people think I am. If I've seen it, read it, or heard it, I don't forget it... ever."

Richard Stadler has posed:
Richard Stadler keeps quiet, for a few moments, sitting there and again allowing Crush to get control of her emotions again. Certainly her didn't know anything about a possible biological basis fro the fits of anger, but rage issues were at least known to him. Nothing knew, even if he wasn't a psychologist. Just like he didn't teach social sciences or history. And it was clear that being a teacher was, at least here, going to mean more than grading papers and trying to get kids excited about the four chambers of the heart. So he simply waited until the plant was throughly dead and buried, and responded.

"He does sound like a proper bastard, that's true. I try to remember that few people are truely good or evil, but some people... some ppeople we're simply better without." He says, looking a bit into the distance.

But he shakes himself a bit, and continues, "If Superman can't deal with him, then stealth and obfuscation might be the order of the day. Though I'm glad you can defend yourself from him, in any case. Still leaves a bad taste in my mouth that you /have/ to. But we'll have to take a look at it. It could be simply a biological component, with the senses; what we know as visable light for humans is a narrow band of the spectrum, so it's possible there may be a different set of rods in your eyes; or it might be a processing issue for the senses themselves. Rapid healing... certainly I'm heard of it, but the mystery is where the calories come from-"

He pauses again. "Sorry, rambling." He notes... before looking at her with curiousity as she leans forward, returning the geasture, at least, to provide even a sembalance of secrecy. "That's... helpful. Amazingly helpful, actually, in a number of fields. But there's a difference between retaining the information and being able to output it, or properly comprehend it. It's-"

There's a sudden loud beeping at the wrist watch he wears, grimacing as he takes a look. "I am... so sorry. I'm hitting a caution zone on my schedule. I booked dinner in a restuarant a few blocks from here, and I need to shower, and change still." He notes, standing up, and grabbing his own empty water bottle. "But we'll talk later, all right? I do want to see if I can get Doctor Macintyre on board with this."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
Standing up as he does, Crush offers a nod to him. With everything that he'd just shared, the sincerity, the seeming to care, it still played through her head as a 'wait and see' thing. Either he would talk more later or he wouldn't, and which ever he choose would decide for her whether or not he was an asshole or a good guy.

"Oh hey yeah," she comments with a grin. "Don't wanna miss your meal, sorry I kept ya so long. Uh..." she blinks, trying to remember the proper social way to say good bye without just saying those two words.

"Have a good night," she then says, having remembered. "Enjoy your meal."