17294/=Seems Like Old Times... with a Difference!

=Seems Like Old Times... with a Difference!
Date of Scene:	27 February 2024
Location:	Grant's Gym - Amusement Mile
Synopsis:	Ted meets Blue again for the first time!
Cast of Characters:	Ted Grant, Blue GhostEyes

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Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant has noted before that while the gym is fairly jumping during daylight hours, it is a little dead at night. This is Gotham after all. He has tried several schemes to liven up the evenings. Stay ten rounds, no five, no two... stay standing ten seconds with Wildcat and win a prize! Workout with Wildcat -hell no. Discounts for night hour memberships. Fudge no! they know someone who knows someone thinks they saw the Joker on Amusement Mile! So it's Ted, alone manning the desk. He can't even look forward to someone trying to rob the place. All the crooks know better now, the cowards. It is a good time to read the early edition.

That's a newspaper for you nobheads.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
One of Blue's cases brought her to Gotham. She rather hates this city. It's.. well, most of it a shithole. There are good spots though and she saw a cool looking gym while she was on the prowl earlier. She lost the scent just a few blocks ahead of the place and didn't pick it up again. There had been another scent however, one that brought to mind scenes and smells from another lifetime. The one she currently remembers best.

For at least half an hour Blue sticks to the shadows watching the place and remembering. An old comrade in arms, she thinks. How he's still alive she hasn't a clue. Maybe she's wrong, it's happened before. Dying takes a lot out of you, away from you and while she didn't die in that godsforsaken war, she did afterwards. Or rather *He* did. She was a fella back then. There's also been quite a few deaths after that. It's so familiar though.

After awhile, seeing how quiet the place is, Blue is unable to resist. She glances down at herself, cowboy boots, faded black jeans and leather jacket and a navy t-shirt that say "Off the Rez". You can get away with shit like that when you are an actual Indian or just don't give a damn what people think. Bracing herself, Blue marches across the street and enters the gym.

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grantlooks up from his newspaper as the door opens. He tenses a moment ready for action! Then he relaxes, ready for action in a very different way after seeing Blue enter the bar. He head tilts a moment. Gotham doesn't have a lot of First Nation people running around. Something about it being built on a burial ground or just being a shit hole.

He folds his Gazette carefully to keep his place, gives a big smile and says, "Evening Miss. Welcome to Grant's Gym, Grant being me. You can call me champ. Come in grab a seat. What brings you here? On rotten nights I usually comp a cup of coffee or tea." He gets up to produce a hot beverage. "We got cocoa too, but it's instant as my barista is off for the night."

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Briefly Blue considers how hard it must be to run a business in this area. She sorta knows the feeling, she's running her P.I. business out of her home. The neighborhood is better but it's still her house and not a real office and her reputation is... interesting. It can be hard to come by customers at times. "Coffee would be great, thanks." She shudders a bit at the thought of instant cocoa. People usually make it with water and its fucking disgusting like that. They also use that crap packets kind. Coffee is not nearly as easy to screw up.

Grant. He said his name was Grant. The name doesn't ring any bells but the scent sure does. People can change a lot over time though. She isn't about to just announce she thinks she knew the guy in another life, on another continent. It does sound crazy, doesn't it? She watches him work through a pair of odd eyes. The irises are half ebony as is common among the First Nations but the other half, a pale blue. Pale like glacier ice. It gives her an otherworldly appearance at times, a predatory one at others.
% "Quiet night, huh?" Blue asks softly. Her eyes flick towards the newspaper and she blinks in surprise and then grins. "Thought I was the only one that still reads the actual paper. My names Blue, Blue GhostEyes." Would he remember his old aquaintance John? John Pale Eyes. That's what she went by back then.

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant returns with a cup. He drinks the stuff steadily until six or so. If Blue GhostEyes spurs a memory, it is nothing distinct or urgent. "You, First Nations? Obviously. I met a few of you during the War. You can hear the capital 'W'. They did code work, other stuff. So what brings you down here at night? We usually get Bats or theme criminals."

Ah, screw it, he gets a cup for himself.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
"Yeah. I figure this is the Bat's territory so I usually keep out but I was after some deadbeat. He managed to disappear before I caught up with him." She doesn't mention the man used some sort of magic to do it. He must've got his hands on some artifact or something because he scented as an ordinary human right up until he disappeared. She turned and he was gone. Just a hint of weirdness in the air.

"I was in that war." Blue decides to admit. "It was a hard war. Most of the people I knew from there passed away a long time ago. I'm Shoshone." She was born Shosone as far as she knows and while her bodies sometimes take the form of other Nations, usually she's Shoshone. "I wasn't Navajo so I didn't do much code work. I was more of a hands on kinda soldier."

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant peers at her. "I was a mystery man. I did homefront operations, and a few overseas in uniform. I knew a couple Shoshone. Are you a shapeshifter? I ask because you brought up tracking by scent and magic. Most of the ones I met were Nazis and bad news. Seewolf for one."

"You look kinda familiar."

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Strange eyes alight with interest Blue offers a quirky grin. She fishes her wallet out of her jacket pocket, careful like so he knows she isn't reaching for a gun, and flips through it til she finds an old faded picture. It's a group of soldiers and one in particular might stick out to Ted. A tall and muscular Native American with the same eyes as Blue and the same boxer's build, albeit a bit heavier.

"I was John Pale Eyes back then." She says softly.

Normally she'd never have done this, or admitted these things but lately she's been trying to live her life differently and that means taking chances. "I'm a coyote shifter but I kept that quiet during the war. Didn't want caught by the Govermint and stuck in some cage somewhere."

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant nods. "Yeah the government is big on telling the Shoshone and such where to live. Wait... John ... Johnny, I knew Johnny! I'm Ted Grant former heavy weight champ... Johnny, I gotta ask... what the fuck happened? I mean not that this doesn't look good I mean... I'm gonna shut up and let you talk now." He leans closer to take another look. Yeah there is a semblance there. But... do not check her out. It's Johnny.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
The corners of Blue's eyes crinkle in amusement at Ted's reaction. "He found peace for a little while once he got back to the states but things weren't good for our kind back then. Didn't matter he was a soldier in a good cause, a group of good ol' southern boys killed his wife and their unborn child. Johnny lost his mind. He died taking them out to the last man. That last one got him though. He's buried next to his wife over in the Woodlawn cemetary cause that's what her brother wanted. She was only part Indian but Johnny never cared. He really loved that woman."

And that relationship, in that lifetime, all those years ago, is the last time Blue let herself care for or love anyone. It's only this month she's come to the conclusion that isn't a sustainable lifestyle anymore if she wants to remain sane. Hence the risk of looking Ted up when she caught his scent. Well, that and curiousity... she's always been curious about things. "I remember enough to know it's real good to see you Ted." Blue smiles a bit inspite of her dark news.

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant has been called old fashioned. Perhaps. But you can't live as long as he has without either going insane, becoming a hermit or adopting. Is this reincarnation? Who cares? His response is to the person before him who has pain you could see from orbit. He puts his hand on hers.

"Well we defended democracy and me and most of my friends wound up in front of the House Unamerican Activities Committee, suspected of being commies. We went into enforced retirement. things got better but... I don't age due to a magical fight I got into. I can't die easily and my friends are all gone... or maybe not? It's good to see an old friend. Even if it was another life. Wow... you look good."

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
At the mention of what happened to Ted and his friends Blue shakes her head and curses. A lot. "Ungrateful inbred stupid sonsofbitches!" She ends with. She covers Ted's hand with her own and sighs. "I'm sorry. You deserved better. We all did. I remember he went to the police first but they didn't care about a dead Indian woman. Or even a Soldier man. So he took them down on his own."

And took a rather dark path in the next life after that one. Something Blue is trying to avoid for the most part this time.

"I'm old, Ted. It wasn't something I used to share. I had to be careful, even among the First Nations. I was born before the first settlers came to these lands, but I do and can and have died. Many times. It fucks with your memory. I don't recall but bits and pieces and couldn't tell you how many lives I've lived if I wanted to. It's immortality of a kind I guess."

She sips at her coffee and then shrugs. "Usually I die and just end up in a coma and come back, still with a messed up head. If my body is too destroyed then I get a new one. Like now. I've had this one and been Blue GhostEyes for about ten years." She looks Ted over seriously and then manages a genuine smile. "You look good too."

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant nods. He doesn't remove his hands. "I... die. When I come back I'm 100% healed. But till I come back... I see them, all of the old crew and they're smiling and waving at me to come to meeting, and then I wake up. Taste the blood in my mouth. I'm not that old but, my memory goes in and out at times. I have a lot to remember. So, like your spirit goes on and on?" Then he does come around the counter to sit beside her.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue nods with a thoughtful expression. "You remember seeing them waiting huh? I never remember anything but we have different cultures, different beliefs. I know that makes a difference when it comes to this kinda thing. I guess you could say I'm an old soul. I've mostly kept to myself this time around but I'm trying to change that. Coyote's are social animals and I was starting to really suffer from being alone so much."

It is a painful admission and nearly whispered. "I remember just enough to know that before I became Blue, I was an assassian. I only went after truly evil people whose absense made the world a better place but that's a hard line to toe and I suspect I failed in the end. I'm trying to be better this time. I work as a P.I. and tend bar or bounce for fun on the weekends sometimes."

"It's gotten a bit easier with technology y'know. I'm not good at any of that stuff but there is a kid that does those things for me. He made me a simple smart phone. That's what he called it anyway. When I'm in a dangerous situation I record it. That way if I die regular like and come back as Blue I at least have a record of what happened to me. I also keep notes on all the people I know. In case I forget them." It's far from a perfect system but it helps a lot.

Ted Grant has posed:
Ted Grant takes Blue's hand again. "You wanna go somewhere for a /good/ cup of coffee? With me I mean. We can talk about the olden days or whatever you want. I like old souls and despite the moniker, I like canines. Coyotes are cool. I hope they release that movie from Dubbya B. Yeah, I watch cartoons sometimes. Maybe I can introduce you to another old soul I know. I'd have to ask them."

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
"Well. This is hardly the worst coffee I've had but.. yeah. I think I'd like that Ted." Blue smiles and gently but firmly squeezes his hand. She knows the value of a proper handshake after all. It's funny really, the things that she always remembers vs the things she doesn't or rarely does. "I think I'd like that a lot. Can't stay in Gotham all night but I can spare a few hours. If you can leave your place here." Blue glances around and blinks. "I guess nights aren't you're busy time eh?" Kinda makese sense for this city she supposes.