12191/Meta Matriculations

Meta Matriculations
Date of Scene:	27 July 2022
Location:	Morningside Heights
Synopsis:	Kamala makes plans for the future after meeting Mercy
Cast of Characters:	Kamala Khan, Mercy Thompson

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Kamala Khan has posed:
    July 27th. July 27th plus being eighteen years old. You know what that means? That means if you're Kamala Khan, you're stressed to the nines trying to make your final decision about college. New York was a given, of course...it's where all the best superheroes are. So that means she applied to practically every school out there.

    Of course, given good grades, that means she got /accepted/ to almost all of them, which now means she has to actually CHOOSE. THAT means touring campuses, dealing with trips, and AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!

    Stressed? Maybe just a little. The Desi girl is dressed up reasonably nicely as she walks towards the Columbia campus, with a smartphone in hand as she lets Google tell her the way, and makes her way towards the Columbia Campus. Her thumbs move over her phone as she texts her friends, keeping them on top of her adventure.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    Mercy may not have graduated from Columbia, but often you can see about using the libraries or pay to take advantages of services. That's why Mercy has herself a pack full of printouts and some information that she used there and is starting to head on out.
    She's got a lot on her mind, and when her thoughts turn inward like that, Mercy tends to listen to her nose more then her eyes. She smells Kamala's stress before she even sees the girl. The campus doesn't have a lot of stressed out students like you may have near finals after all. That pulls Mercy from her brown study to look up notices that the girl is about to walk into something. So Mercy takes a few quick steps and puts a hand on the girl's shoulder to try and stop her before she bangs into a trashcan. "Watch out there!" Mercy doing her best to smile, "you okay?"

Kamala Khan has posed:
    Kamala blinks as she gets the hand put in her shoulder. "Huh? I--" She looks to see where she was going. "Oh, jeez. Thanks. My mom would kill me if I ruined this outfit." She gives a smile back to Mercy. "Thanks for the rescue."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "For me it was always the dads I had to watch out for compared to my mom." Mercy waves off the thanks as she adjusts the shoulder strap some, "don't worry about the so called rescue. But you okay? You seemed kind of stressed or on edge." Mercy glances around to be sure the young girl isn't in trouble from someone near by. "I'm Mercy by the way," offering a hand over.

Kamala Khan has posed:
    Kamala nods. "A little, yeah. Trying to decide what college's offer to accept. Getting ready to move here from Jersey. And my abbu is the nicest guy every. But my ammi is a terror if I do anything she doesn't like. Which is, honestly, most things." Kamala says with self-deprecating humor.

    She offers a hand out to Mercy. "I'm Kamala."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "Abbu is....like father or something?" She doesn't know that language much at all. "That sounds like my opposite. My sort of surrogate foster father was not one to cross lightly. He always knew if you lied or tried to trick him." Mercy gives a wide smile and looks over the young girl, "Very pretty name. Well I live only a few blocks away, I can't speak of campus life but if you want to know about this part of New York. I can try to help."

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "Well, what's it like?" Kamala smiles. "Would you like to get some coffee or something? Are there any coffee shops near here?" She's energetic, and it shows as she rattles off question after question at Mercy. "I've got to check out the campus, but I have some time."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    Mercy laughs and says, "It's a college campus area. There's going to be coffee." She takes a bit to look around, sniffing the air as she tries to subtly work her senses. "I think you'll get the best cup that way," she says after she gets the scent she is looking for. "I could go for something to drink and maybe a nibble. So what major you looking to take?" Mercy turning the way they are going.

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "I haven't decided. Thankfully, you don't have to declare till technically the end of the second year, maybe the end of the first if you're REALLY ambitious. I haven't figured out what I'm good at yet." She motions to Mercy. "Come on, I'll buy you a cup of coffee for saving my outfit." She gives a winning smile.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    Mercy walks along with the girl along the way, "you don't have to buy me anything. I'm the supposed adult with a j-o-b. Unless you are like super rich, then by all means, buy away." The can see a shop up ahead named Nous Espresso. "That looks like the one," pointing to it.

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "VERY not rich. But a latte is cheaper than a dry-cleaning bill." Kamala smiles. "Seems like the least I can do is buy you a coffee." A wry smile. "But I'm not gonna push it too hard. If you don't want one, I can let you go and go check on the campus."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "A girl after my own heart," agrees Mercy. "Nah I just won't take your money. But happy to talk and see about what I may be able to try and answer. Maybe calm your nerves a touch." She will hold the door open for Kamala when they get to the door, "after you Ms Kamala." Stepping in behind the other girl.

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "Khan." She offers. "Kamala's my first name, Khan's my family name." She walks into the coffee shop, and moves into the line. "I'll take a latte, please." She asks. "And a biscotti." She steps to the side to see what Mercy orders.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "I was just trying to be polite, but I'll remember." To answer in time, "I'm Mercy Thompson. I got a garage in Harlem." Mercy shows her sweet tooth as she orders herself a caramel iced coffee, and some of the bread with chicken guacamole.

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "You can just call me Kamala. Everyone does." She collects her order and heads to a table. "So what's the neighborhood like? Do you see a lot of people from the campus out here? Do you do a lot of business with them?" Lots of questions.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "Well not many students here have cars. I tend to specialize in older German cars at that for my business. Harlem itself isn't all bad. Definitely has its own culture and feel to it. The campus is sort of a pocket between here and areas more south of Harlem." Mercy will settle in and start to talk with Kamala about the area and answering the girl's question as best she can. "Please call me Mercy."

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "Well, if you get ahold of any cheap cars, Mercy, let me know? I'll probably need something up here. And I don't have a car of my own yet. I was a bike girl up until recently." She explains. "And I know my folks won't spring for anything expensive."

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "How cheap you talking? I can always get something running for a small get about without costing you too much." Mercy plays with the straw while she talks. "But even a cheap car will be several hundred dollars or so." She considers the options, "what do you think you can afford?"

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "Well, my family isn't well-off, but they can afford something. They just won't want to buy me anything too expensive. I...had a couple incidents learning how to drive. So they're going to want to get me something cheap in case I have an accident." Kamala explains.

Mercy Thompson has posed:
    "Well if you want I can always give an eye over on something that you take in for me to see how it works. Make sure you don't end up with a lemon. Like you may be able to find a Cabriolet for about," Mercy hmms in thought. "I say a reliable one for maybe $2,000 or so?" Seeing how Kamala reacts to that number.

Kamala Khan has posed:
    "Definitely. I'll try and look, but if you can find anything, let me know?" Kamala says, taking a sip of her latte. "You can save me again."