13775/Of Birds and Zen

Of Birds and Zen
Date of Scene:	08 January 2023
Location:	Robinson Park - Miagani Island
Synopsis:	Harper Row meets a vampire hunter doing meditation martial arts in the snow. Future shenanigans are set up!
Cast of Characters:	Susan Sullivan, Harper Row

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Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Gloria was street legal, even if the custom-built electric vehicle looked more like something out of Mass Effect than out of a google search for any automotive related terms. Susan is just outside, in clothes entirely too breezy for the weather out there. Barefoot in capri pants and a tank top, the brunette stands in the snow doing martial arts for meditation. She looks happy enough, and her body isn't showing the signs of frostbite or turning red from the cold that other people might.

Harper Row has posed:
Harper doesn't usually come in heavy unless there's a pretty severe threat, her Bluebird costume reserved for such. But there's been talk of something pretty unique happening in this part of Gotham, and today is a patrol day. What better way to assert a nosey presence and do so from a position as a protector?

The sound of Harper's motorcycle is heard before seen, throttling down as she pulls up closer to the rather eye-catching 'Gloria'. Bluebird's mouth forms an O as she's able to take in more details. Kickstand down and cycle resting a number of car-lengths away, Harper makes her way on over at a relaxed pace. The better to scope out the individual, perhaps the owner, seemingly untroubled by the chilly weather. A temperature that is certainly bracing on the exposed portions of Harper's mask. She can see her own breath after all. "Ooookay..."

The Bluebird crunches through the snow in her boots, watching the stranger doing what she's doing. "Hey." She honestly hopes this isn't a tooktoomuch situation. "Hey there, I gotta say, if there's ever a polar bear dip competition, my money is on you."

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Susan stops, standing to face and look at Harper. She smiles and gives a wave. The sun is up, so she's not particularly worried. "It's something Shao Lin monks do," she says. "Hang on, let me go put some shoes on." Climbing up into the back door of the unusual vehicle, she disappeared inside.
    Gloria is a 6-wheeled vehicle. It doesn't look like a truck, though. The wheels are massive, each a few feet wide and at least 18 inches thick. They don't look like street tires, either. The only door seems to be the one the polar bear champion exited into. The construction of the vehicle looks like stainless steel. Above and between the big wheels is just enough space for a, what can be seen through the door from the outside, a living space that looks just as out of place to modern society as the rest of the vehicle. However, it's not some alien craft. The tires are definitely something made on earth. They have English stamped into the sides.
    A couple minutes later, Susan hops out wearing boots and a warm coat and a nice, warm hat. As she talks, she slides her hands into gloves. "Sorry, I was meditating, but keeping up that focus all the time takes my eyes off of elsewhere." She puts her hands on her hips and smiles at the other woman dressed like a superhero. "So, what can I do for you?" she asks, as helpful as she can possibly be.

Harper Row has posed:
"That is one big honkin beast." Harper exclaims, eyeing the vehicle more closely. The gadget tech-minded kind of girl Harper is, the vehicle flips all the Ooo-Aah switches. She refrains from actually touching Susan's ride, though by the facial expressions she can't keep behind a poker face, she's obviously intrigued.

When Susan comes back out with better looking clothes for the climate, Bluebird seems to take this as a good sign. "For real? Like...an ancient practice?" Susan doesn't seem to be an influencer, Harper not spying any obvious recording devices to get some views. Though certainly doing martial arts in the park barefoot next to an amazing vehicle just screams it as a possibility. "Just out and about, on Patrol I guess you could call it. I'm not a cop obviously. I'm uh...I'm...helping out." Harper offers a kind of shrug and her hands hook onto her hips. "You don't look like you're tweaking. Sometimes some folks need help getting to a clinic if they're out and about without care for their safety, and someone may have been chirping about a young woman either getting 'gram views or maybe...Anyways! Just checking in to see if you're alright. I'm Bluebird." she offer a gloved hand. "One of the Good ones, I promise."

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    "No, I get it," Susan says as Harper tries to find the right words. She grips Bluebird's hand in her own. "Susan," Susan susans. "To answer your questions, actual ancient practice, I'm not high or streaming, and I think I'm alright." She looks around at the world around her and looks pretty happy to be out in it. "It's a beautiful day for a patrol, at least."

Harper Row has posed:
Harper looks out to share the view. She feels more than a little relieved to be having an actual conversation. "Sure is. I think I've seen some Tai Chi out here when the weather is better for the folks practicing. You've got a lot of room today. Just have to be careful after the sun goes down." Harper's lips quirk almost apologetically. "Patrol usually takes on a whole other urgency after it gets dark in Gotham. It's full of great people, but there's still desperate folks that make bad decisions." Harper rakes a hand through her faux-hawk. "Whether you can take care of yourself or not, just have both eyes and ears open if you're not familiar with the neighbourhoods. Say, did you recently arrive? Visiting a friend?"

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Susan nods. "Yeah, I'm way more careful after dark," she says. She unzips her coat some and reaches in, pulling out a wooden dowel that's been carved into a point. That doesn't seem to be what she was going after, though, and she pulls out garlic, a crucifix, and a mirror. Finally, she pulls out her phone. Pressing the button on the side, she looks at the screen. "Sunset's hours away, though," she says, starting to put things back where they go.

Harper Row has posed:
Harper gawks some. "Waitaminute..." She's usually pretty quick, and when you lay out the tools of your trade, or perhaps just measures to ward off certain things, the lego thoughts all make a nice pattern. Harper feels a bit of imaginary ice trickle down her spine. She doesn't have a spidey sense, but she has common sense. "Are you a...Hunter?" Oh crap, there's blood suckers in Gotham maybe. Unless this is a prank or a joke. "Susan, are you here in town for ~business~?" It's hard to eyebrow waggle behind the mask, some she tries to put emphasis on the word.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Susan hesitates just slightly. "I always keep myself prepared," she finally says. "I've had some...bad experiences." Her smile has faded. "I'm never going to let that happen to me again," she points out. She clears her throat. The jovial conversation was gone. However, she does go to Gloria and pull out a long, metal rod. It's made of iron with silver inlaid into it like some pope's scepter. It looks good, but it's definitely some manner of holy relic. It's not a kajillionty years old, but-- "I confess, I've dispatched a few," she says.

Harper Row has posed:
Harper adjusts her mask to allow the opaque lenses to retract up and away, letting her bare eyes play over the things Susan handles. And the woman as well. Her body posture adjusts, become more wary, less relaxed. Tension entering her body as she considers her words. "I can understand that. Stuff to do with bad experiences." She clears her throat as well, the weather feeling chillier by the second. "I can't admit to having tussled with them, but...I'd really like you to fill me in on if this city is playing host to one or more. This is serious stuff. Just the sort of thing me and others in town try to protect its citizens from. Do you have intel on something lurking or trying to set up shop?"

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    "Nothing specific," Susan says, shaking her head. "No new covens or herds, at least. I caught one passing through--a young one, not very careful and leaving a trail of bodies. She nods. "He watched a sunrise with me. It was very romantic, but he left me with a mess to clean up."

Harper Row has posed:
Harper tilts her head to the side, like a dog hearing a sound beyond human ken, or trying to work out algebra. "You..." Right. Harper takes in a breath and nods. There's some relief of a problem no longer being problematic. But there's also more than a hint of finality that troubles the young woman. Harper chews her bottom lip for a moment. "When you clean up a mess, I suppose that's a way to prevent a worse mess?" Harper grunts and delves into her utility pouches to pull out a card. Contact details routing to a specific phone that's for special types of concerns. She extends it to Susan. "You're obviously capable. I'd like to keep in touch."

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Susan takes it. "I should get cards made," she says, mostly to herself. She pockets the card. "Still, I assume it's got NFC capabilities and is sharing everything with my phone already." She smiles. Well...if the card didn't do that, it's not the worst idea in the world. She looks around before looking back at Harper. "If you need help with any similar problems, I'm not as capable as I was, but I've got some new tools that should make up the difference. If you want to talk more privately, I assume you have my number, now."

Harper Row has posed:
Harper bites her lip, unwilling to completely divulge to admit or not what she can gather. "I...we...do tend to have our hands full of problems that crop up. I can't say for sure how much some of my friends have with dealing with...what you handle. But I definitely will contact you. We all try to be specialists for this or that." Harper nods and eyes Susan, recalling how untroubled by the weather she was, and her apparent line of work. "I'll be moving on for now, but I'm glad to have met you. Gave me a bit of a scare thinking we might have an infestation, if it can be called that? But yeah, let's talk again soon. Let's."

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Susan nods and takes a step back, the lighthearted smile back on her face. She waves. "Thanks for talking!" she says. "Be well!" She waits for Harper to depart before she stashes her staff back inside what might be her home, kick snow off her boots, and climb inside where it's warm.