13524/Aces & Mates

Aces & Mates
Date of Scene:	06 December 2022
Location:	Las Vegas, Nevada
Synopsis:	Johnny surprises Kitty with a trip to Vegas.
Cast of Characters:	Johnny Storm, Kitty Pryde

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Johnny Storm has posed:
Johnny surprised Kitty with a mysterious limo and a drive to a private airfield. There, the pilot owed Johnny a favor and kept mum about the destination, letting Kitty figure th ings out for herself. Knowing her, she probably figured it out pretty fast, just from trajectory alone. She's too damn bright to surprise easily.

Johnny's waiting on the tarmac, with a bundle of roses and a bottle of wine. He has on a black leather jacket and sunglasses over a tight white tee and black slacks. His hair is slicked back a bit, the dirty blonde a bit darker than usual, probably from the product in it. He comes to the end of the stairs to take Kitty's hand when she walks down.

"Soooooooooo, feel like a little gambling? Or are you more of a spa type?"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
If she didn't figure it out en route, then the descent with the Vegas Strip visible in the distance would have surely given it away. She lets out a laugh and moves over to give Johnny Storm a hug of greeting. "Wow, was not expecting this when the car came to pick me up," she says, still laughing warmly at the magnitude of the surprise.

"Oh, I'd be good with either. I'm not the biggest of gamblers, probably enjoy the clubs and spas and pools and things more," she says. "Though a game of poker with friends can also be a lot of fun. I'm more into the fun than the money," she admits.

She smiles to Johnny and lets him lead them over to the ride to wherever they'll be staying. "Hey I hadn't had a chance to tell you I don't think. I got a job with Stark Industries," she says, her expression showing she's rather happy about the news.

Johnny Storm has posed:
Johnny Storm embraces Kitty, planting a kiss on her cheek, "Congratulations," he says. "Knew you would, of course. Even if you weren't a beautiful woman, you've got the kind of brains that Tony Stark loves to ogle. Almost as much as he'll ogle the rest of you," he says. "Not that I'm judging. I ogled first."

He takes her hand and leads her outside to a hired car, not a full limo this time but still a luxury vehicle. "Belaggio," he says to the driver. "I've taken the liberty of getting a room for a few days. I don't know how long you can stay. But just in case..."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty smiles and sits close as the care drives over to the strip from McCarran. "Actually it was Pepper Potts. She had, ah... tracked me back for some stuff I did that had assisted a project Stark was working on. Solved some issues of the city's powergrid that were causing them issues." She sighs and shakes her head. "Which never should have happened, but a friend used that computer while I was away to watch a movie," she says, then laughs softly. "But anyway, yeah, got a call out of the blue which turned into a job offer."

She leans over and looks up at the well lit casinos as they pull down the strip to Bellagio. "I was here about 2 months with some friends," she says. "We, ah... over-indulged a bit," she admits with a small blush. "Reconstructing what happened the night before was kind of difficult."

Johnny Storm has posed:
Johnny Storm nods, "That's what Vegas is for. City of indulgence. I spent a lot of time here, especially back in the late 90s and early 2000s. Lots of very embarrassing photographs of which exist online. JNCO jeans. Lots of neon. Oh god, I had a zoot suit," he says, giving a little shiver.

He raises a hand as a couple of photographers who hang around the hotel lobby see Johnny Storm coming in, "Hey, Johnny, haven't seen you since you got out of rehab!" one says.

"Thanks for reminding me, Duke," Johnny says.
"A real waste. A world class whiskey man like you goin' into retirement. A damn shame," says Duke.

"For the lady's privacy, would you guys excuse me?"
"Ah, go on. Use the third elevator, TMZ's got a squad on lobby duty," the other photog says. They're old guys, from back when the Mob ran the town, with a little bit of honor left in them. Johnny also tips them a few hundred each, which probably helps.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
As they get into the elevator she says, "That was pretty smooth. It's not always what you know, but who you know, isn't it?" she says as the elevator heads up, music playing softly. "Only been here one or two times before this latest," she says of Vegas. "And one of them was work," she adds, and probably meaning the X-men he could guess.

"Going to have to dig up a few of those photos though," she says with a laughing grin. "Who knows, maybe we can find an 80s party somewhere and you can even recreate the look. Parachute pants maybe?" she teases.

When the elevator arrives, she slips her hand into his and steps off with him.

Johnny Storm has posed:
The elevator is swift and smooth, the mingled overhead radio interspersed with the distant sounds of casino announcements, ringing bells and shouting from the floor not so very far away. He may take advantage of a moment's privacy to press a kiss to the young woman's lips, limiting their conversation for the duration of their trip, but none but they and the three surveillance cameras in the elevator know the truth.

"Second door on the right," Johnny says a little breathlessly. He actually does have an appointment for them at one of those fancy poker games, but it doesn't start for another four hours...