17651/Ice Cream Break

Ice Cream Break
Date of Scene:	14 April 2024
Location:	Sweet Dreams
Synopsis:	Eve lets Mark know she's back in town - they catch up over ice cream, and Mark introduces Eve to the other Viltrumite on the planet, that also happens to be his girlfriend.
Cast of Characters:	Eve Wilkins, Mark Grayson, Sunny Harlow

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Eve Wilkins has posed:
So. She'd been away a while. Overseas, with some of her charity programs that she tried to do. When you could make anything from what was essentially nothing... you could do a lot of good in the world. Or so Eve had thought. But everyone gets homesick, and that had happened to her - returning to this part of the world and trying to reconnect and realizing that being away from everyone meant that she had lost touch.

And so she had gone through her list of contacts, and was now on Mark.

There were complicated feelings there, which may be why she was saving it for last, but... he had always been one of her truest friends, she felt.

After a brief conversation over chat, she had invited him to the ice cream place near Happy Harbor where she waited, in a casual top and denim pants, an ice cream sundae in front of her. Don't worry, she had transmutated all of the calories out of it. (She hadn't). Every so often, she'd glance towards the window, somewhat fitfully.

Mark Grayson has posed:
It's been months since the last time Mark and Eve talked. And... there has been a lot that happened. So very much. But when her contact lit up for the first time in months, Mark had been studying, and it only took a few moments for her to give a location and he gave a thumbs up. 'Be there soon!' he had texted back.

And it's only a short flight from New York to Happy Harbor and a change of uniform later, as the door jingles to announce a customer, and ... that is Mark, right?

He hasn't changed that much. The same dark hair, same grey eyes. But he seems more relaxed, if anything. Gone is the sweaters and jeans, Mark's dressed in a yellow t-shirt beneath a Hawaiian style shirt with little pink flamingos on it, and a pair of board shorts with canvas shoes on his feet.

It only takes him a moment to find the familiar redhead at the table. "Eve!" he calls out with a wave as he makes his way over, he'll place an order in a moment. She is clearly more important than ice cream.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
Eve does perk up as Mark enters the ice cream shop, stepping out of her booth to open her arms up in an offered hug.

And, if accepted, it would be a very fervent little hug before she takes a step away, a lock of her red hair sliding in her eyes. She looked relaxed herself, although the tension in her features was real from the events of just the night before.

"How have you been, Mark?" she asks. "You look well - I'm glad you knew this place. Thought I'd come back to community college after High School, enroll in a few classes," she adds.

"Really - I'm glad to see you're okay," she says. "I heard a little about... well... your father," she says.

Mark Grayson has posed:
Mark has no issues at all, stepping into Eve's embrace and pulls her to him tightly -- has he gotten stronger? -- and squeezes lightly. "Hey you!" he greets with warmth before he lets her go when she's ready to pull away. His hands rest on her upper arms. "You look good, Eve. Great, really!" A grin that crooks the side of his mouth before he lets go completely.

"Oh yeah, this was totally a favorite place to hang out after graduation." Mark admits. "I'm taking classes here when I can, just been really busy, with everything." A soft grunt as she brings up Nolan. "We'll get to that." he promises her.

And with that, he takes the seat across from her. "How was your mission? You're doing way more to save the world than I am." A pause. "...haven't seen you since your birthday." He doesn't want to poke and prod too far, but she was just gone. But now she's back. "If you want to talk about, totally can. If not, absolutely no pressure. But I figured that'd be a good place to start with what I've been up to?"

Eve Wilkins has posed:
After the hug was delivered, Eve does take a step backwards. He did feel less... she'd describe it as less human. More solid than expected. At least, she didn't remember it as such. She doesn't linger after the friendly hug, taking a step away and inviting him to the seat across her from the booth.

"*Best* place to study. And not study, because it was so easy to get distracted just chatting away," says Eve with a little smile touching her lips. Although his reaction to Nolan - she nods her head, features growing more serious for a moment.

"It helped. I felt... like if I could go out and just do *something* - something good, rather than stopping this criminal, or that supervillain. I wanted to help *build* things, *solve* things, and end the day feeling as if I did something, rather than just keep pushing things forward a little bit, you know?" she says.

One leg folds over the other, as she dips her spoon into the ice cream again, taking a bite. "Maybe you're doing enough to save the world. It takes everyone to pitch in a little bit, I think, for the world to become a better place. And I don't know if humanity is quite there yet."

Mark Grayson has posed:
"Will it ever be? If it isn't super villians, it's petty squabbles." A shrug of Mark's shoulders and he sighs for a moment before nodding. "You're right though - everyone should pitch in a little. And what you were doing? That's just as important as punching Brainiac in the face. Don't let anyone tell you different. Ever."

A slight pause, and he continues. "So. Cliff notes version of the last year!" he offers as he folds his hands in front of him on the table. "Couple of Flaxan incursions. Travelled to New Krypton to help out there - that was interesting. I can't imagine losing my powers just because a sun is a different color."

"Joined the Titans and Young Avengers. Titans to help out on their big issues when they need some extra muscle outside of all the muscle they already have - Young Avengers, because well, you kinda inspired me to remember to help out close at home when I can." he admits. "Made some friends, been keeping in touch with those back home - oh, Art's opened a tailor shop in Manhattan!"

"So... dad." A sigh. His hands press together, eyes downcast in thought. "I don't know if it was a lie, or what. But he had everyone convinced that for the last 20 years, he didn't have powers. But, after he learned that Indestructibelle was a Viltrumite as well, things changed. He started pushing me harder to work on my own or with her. And then, he started hiring Supervillains to come after me. Strong ones. Ones I didn't have much of a chance against at the time. Like Juggernaut. He threw a Starbucks - like the whole thing - at me. Said that he was paid to 'toughen me up'."

Finally, he decides to place an order. "Two scoops of Chilie Pineapple ripple, please. On a cake cone." Order placed, his attention turns back to Eve. "He went to a space antenna in Hawai'i. Apparently, he had gotten the Maulers on board to try to contact Viltrum. I don't know why. But... it was big fight. Lots of heroes. Omni-Man nearly held his own against us all. But in the midsts of nearly killing me - he stopped. And then he fled. Cecil said he left the solar system a couple of months ago."

"And here we are."

Eve Wilkins has posed:
That... that was a lot. And Eve listens throughout all of that. There was a heaviness in her features, and she leans back in her seat as she listens - she was listening, even if her eyes were downcast, turned towards the ice cream sundae mostly. "I know," she says. "It doesn't mean anything if some horrific otherworldly threat destroys all of Earth as we know it. I've heard a lot about other places, and... I like it here," she says.

Was that a joke? A little bit of one, with her wan smile ticking up the edges of her lips.

"I've been thinking about joining with some groups like that as well," she says. "But I wanted to get settled in, first," she says. "Art? The guy that did your costume? That's good! It's important to keep in touch with those sorts of people," she says.

She snorts a bit with what his dad did to him. "You're plenty tough already. Sounds like he's just trying to make you ruthless - not tough," she says.

"...how do you feel? About all that - like... if he was to show back up on Earth tomorrow, and it could happen, you know - what would you feel about that?" she asks.

Mark Grayson has posed:
There's a moment of pause from Mark. And in those grey eyes of his, there's more than a bit of hurt. He's able to hide it from most of the world - usually behind one-way lenses, but to those that know him best, it's clear as a bell. "I'd want to know what the hell he was thinking. Why did he do it? What was the point? Was it his way to convince me I didn't need others? Was he just trying to push me away? It's near impossible to contact Viltrum, he once said. I don't know if that's true or not."

A breath is blown out. "I don't think I can ever do 'ruthless'." he admits with a small smirk. "I'm more like a Baby Ruth." Terrible word play. That seems to be intact, at least! "Take your time to get settled. There's no ticking time bomb that says you have to join a group or the world's going to end, Eve." He chuckles. "Though I think Killcannon misses you. Mistook Bunny for you one time. That didn't end well for him."

"And yeah. Viltrum was never going to be my home. I grew up here. My mother's from here. I was never going to betray all that for my dad, no matter how much I may love him for being my dad, you know? I've kinda grown attached to the place."

Mark and Eve are sitting across from each other at one of the tables, Eve has a half eaten sundae, Mark just got an ice cream cone. Before he left the apartment, a message would have been sent to Sunny letting her know where he was headed and she was welcome to join if she wanted.

Sunny Harlow has posed:
A message sent, a message recieved, Sunny had sent back that she was on her way. After all, she was in the midst of her 'day job', but ironically enough while she used to spend all her time down the street from here waitressing and working at Joe's, today after a friendly thanks given to Art she'd stepped away for a break and she was headed to the skyline.

A rush of the blonde through the air and a break to change out of her costume, the blonde woman pushes her way through the door a few minutes later, looking over the other patrons in search of a familiar face.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
While Eve wouldn't say she knew Mark the *best* - her friend was someone that she had grown up around, at least. But like she had noted before - it was easy - way too easy - to grow apart. And now was no exception. She listens with that little furrow of her brow that she was known for, twisting a lock of her red hair between thumb and forefinger.

"That's... a lot to deal with. And who knows how much he has been hiding from you, from your mother... from everyone," she says. It takes her a minute to get that wordplay, but when it hits, it comes with a little chuckle. One that dies when Killcannon was mentioned. "You know how many times I just... dream of going evil and finishing that guy off once and for all?" she says, squinting her eye as she brings up her hand, making a squishing motion with thumb and forefinger.

A glance up as Sunny enters the ice cream parlor. She *looked* about the right age range and everything, and had that lookaround gaze that suggested she was meeting someone, but without the cues of actually meeting her... Eve just glances to the blond and back again. Mark would probably be super noticeable though.

Mark Grayson has posed:
"Yeah. It's a lot to parse. And of course, Cecil is so using this to try to tighten the leash. It's a pain in the ass." Mark admits with a frustrated noise. "I'm doing my best to prove I'm not like him, but it's like everything I do, all he says is 'well, your father did that too'. Ugh." And then the subject changes to Killcannon and he shakes his head. "He's not worth the mark it would make on you, Eve. I mean, we've both seen that path before, and he's just not worth that on you."

"Anyway. That's how things have been going for me. I've got a place of my own..." And he was about to get into that when Eve glances up and Mark turns to look over his shoulder, catching sight of the blonde Viltrumite. A grin comes immediately to his face and he lifts his hand in a wave to greet her. "Sunny, over here!" he prompts as his attention returns to Eve.

"Someone I want you to meet." She must be important if Mark is introducing her to one of his closest friends.

Sunny Harlow has posed:
Easily spotted and spotting Mark, there's a lift of her hand towards the man before she was signaled to join, her gaze sweeping over Eve and taking in detail before finding herself drawn in towards the introductions. "Hey there," she offers, a smile as bright as her namesake and a tilt of her head to the side. "I'm Sunny," she adds before looking back to Mark, grinning. "I don't suppose you've ordered -me- a sundae, right?"

Eve Wilkins has posed:
There was something about the name in combination with that smile that sparks a smile of Eve's own, and she stands up, her own sundae having had the opportunity to continue its melting. She reaches out her hand, offering it towards Sunny for a shake. "Eve," she says.

"Went to school with Mark, and that feels like it was forever ago now," She says. "Nice to meet you," she says, moving to sit down again.

"Looks like he did order two scoops for his sundae - maybe he was thinking ahead?" she asks, tapping the side of her head as she looks up towards Sunny again with a wryness, chasing the inevitable press of time by getting another scoop of her ice cream into her mouth.

Mark Grayson has posed:
"What? Why would I do that and deny you the pleasure of trying to figure out what flavors you want to mash together?" Mark asks with a wry little smirk as he rises up to pay Sunny a light kiss on the cheek before he settles back down. "Sunny Harlow, Eve Wilkins, one of my best friends since before I realized I had powers. Eve, this is one of my girlfriends, Sunny. The other one is in Italy on a music scholarship, but she keeps in touch."

"I was just bringing Eve up to date with what I was up to for the last several months while she was out doing real work and I was just slacking off." A little laugh as he settles back down in his seat.

Sunny Harlow has posed:
A little chuckle at that, the kiss is met with a fond hug and a lean of her form to his before she plants a little kiss returned. Eve's comment? It brought a laugh from Sunny. "She's got the right idea," she teases the other Viltrumite before turning her head to the counter. "I suppose I better pick something then...or a couple of somethings."

A nod at Mark's words, his comment about slacking off has her giving him a playful elbowing before making towards the counter to give the pair a moment of discussion alone. She would be back though, likely with some raspberry and lemon combination.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
"Hardly slacking off," says Eve. "By the sound of it, dealing with all sorts of world-ending trouble," she says with a heady sigh.

Spoon is dipped into the ice cream again. She'd actually wait for Sunny to come back again before starting the conversation once more. "How'd you two meet?" she asks, her voice perking up a bit as she settles back into her seat, watching the interaction between the other two. She must have found it cute, with the way she smiles and her face scrunches up a bit.

Mark Grayson has posed:
Mark trusts Eve with a lot of things, it's true. From his identity, to his problems, and everything in between. She's probably his closest friend outside of William and of course, Sunny. What he's not ready to do though is out Sunny. Now if Sunny wants to share, that's on her.

So instead of saying 'Oh, we met when we saved two helicopters that were spinning out of control after colliding." Mark offers the much more tame (and lame). "We met at college - she's studying fashion and design, and she does a lot of cosplay." he offers in way of explanation as he takes another bite of his ice cream.

"Though we didn't start officially dating until around Christmas. You know me, I take forever with everything." he admits with a small chuckle of self-amusement.

Sunny Harlow has posed:
Odds are that if Eve did look up or encounter Indestructibelle, it wouldn't be -that- hard to identify the blonde hanging around with Invincible. Still, she wasn't outed just yet as she came back wih her icecream, the colorful combination that made up the 'blue heaven' in most mixes.

Drawing back at the introduction, she did catch up for that last comment, seemingly putting some of the context together and giving a laugh. "To be fair, dating two people isn't exactly something one jumps into."

Eve Wilkins has posed:
That... surprised Eve, and her brow curls higher. But she was nothing if not polite, and she goes back to eating her ice cream as she sits on the opposite side of her friend and his girlfriend.

"That ice cream looks good - I got a scoop of the strawberry, and a scoop of the vanilla with butterfinger bits," she points out, glancing across the table.

"Here's to new beginnings, at least for me," she says, tapping the side of her sundae dish with her spoon as she gives a smile to the pair again. "And many blessings to you, as well!"

Mark Grayson has posed:
"Fair." Mark allows when Sunny points out the pitfalls of it all. But it's somehow working out?

However, there's a grin. "Bunny texted me to get Chilie Pineapple. I think she just wanted to see if I would." a small smirk and a shake of his head in amusement. "Or she was miffed I woke her up. Time difference." It's real, he forgot it. Oops.

"Here's to happy homecomings and brighter futures, Eve." he points out as he scoots over so that Sunny can settle in next to him. "Alright, so. You were discussing looking for a team. Is this where I get to pitch the Young Avengers to you as a slightly more grown up Teen Team?" There's a little laugh, but he shakes his head. "It's nothing to consider right now, but there's some good people in it."

"But I'm not sure if that's something you want to do? What do you plan to go back to school for?" comes the curious question.

Sunny Harlow has posed:
"Maybe both?" Sunny offers lightly and then makes to indeed settle in, taking a bite of her own choice and giving a little noise of delight. Okay, yes it did indeed seem to be a good option. Still, she listens in as the pair speak, apparently not blinking in the slightest at the mention of the Young Avengers. After all, she was a member herself and...well, she'd just sort of assumedd that Eve was another heroine, given all Mark had said so far.

Eve Wilkins has posed:
A tilt of her head as Eve regards Sunny at Mark's statements, even if she was more prone to laughter than anything else. "I'll consider it," she says, regarding the Young Avengers. "Teen Team doesn't really fit anymore, does it?" she asks. "And I'd imagine, well..." she pauses. "Every team has its own problems," she says.

"I'm actually considering something more science oriented, and that's why I want to go back to school," she says. "To try to get a better... understanding of the world. I see the world as electrons, protons, etcetra. But what if I can see into the quantum, too?" she says. "What if I can understand that - if I can *even* start to understand that."

"What would that mean for everyone?" she asks, her voice quieter.

"There's a few people that want to talk to me, that I could followup with," she says. "Latveria, Victor von Doom?" she says. "He's been doing a lot of good there, and I'd like to reach out to him and see what he might think about collaboration," she says.

"But a lot of potential, a lot of opportunities that *don't* involve me bashing an energy hammer into a rampaging mutant, but that's happening anyways," she says.

Mark Grayson has posed:
"That's fair. There's... so much more you can do than most, I do not fault you at all for being picky." Mark admits with a shake of his head and a blown out breath, pressing his lips together in thought. "Anyone that wants to work with you is going to find out exactly how amazing you are, Eve. And I'll be totally proud to go 'hey, that's my friend'." Another bite of ice cream... and he nearly spits it out at the mention of Doom.

"Seriously??" he manages, after he chokes down the ice cream, a cough to recover himself as he brings a fist up to his mouth and another cough. "I know he's trying the whole 'Latveria's special' thing and that he claims to only want to do good, but I mean, the fact that noone's actually backed up his claims."

A pause. Calm down. It's Eve. She knows what she's doing. Most of the time. MOST OF THE TIME.

"Just be careful on that, alright? I don't want to find out that he's trying to take you apart to figure out how you work. Even if you could bash him with an energy hammer if he got out of line." A little nudge to Sunny's shoulder as she sits there, looking pretty.

Sunny Harlow has posed:
"Having people that you can fall back on is always handy. And it's nice having people to be able to talk to about the 'strange' side of all this, you know?" Sunny offers, her smile returned even as she starts to take another bite only to blink at the mention of Victor Von Doom. She'd heard...mixed things about the man, that much was certain. Still, energy hammer fights were very much the 'norm' in their life.

A little mmpf of agreement muffled by her mouthful of Icecream, it seems that Sunny is perfectly in agreement with energy-weapon-related corrections!

Eve Wilkins has posed:
"I don't *want* to just be known for that, though, too," says Eve.

"It's... I don't know what I'm doing with my life right now," she says, an almighty sigh coming from her as she straightens up. "Seriously, though. And trust me, I've been there, done that - if I get 'I want to take you apart and see how you work' vibes', I'm not going to stick around," she says.

"I'll talk to others too - don't worry, seriously," she says, with a wink sent across the table towards the couple. "And besides... statistically, Latveria often tops the quality of life indexes. If they're doing it by sacrificing half their population to demons or something, I want to know about that, as well," she says, her full lips pursing tight now.

"And besides. I have *two* Viltrumite friends that can come by and punch him if need be," she says.

Mark Grayson has posed:
Okay, fine. Eve's smart. It was easy for her to put two and two together and get Viltrumite couple. BUT, he's not the one that gave it away! He gets credit for that. Right? Mark nods slolwly and lets out a breath. "I'm just glad you're back. It's good to have friends. And if you need anything, you know I'll come running. Oh! It actually only takes me about ten minutes to circle the Earth now." he points out.

Down from thirty, when they last talked. He's getting faster. Stronger. Something is going on. He just hasn't figured it all out yet. "But yes. Get out there, mingle, be social. Make friends. You're always awesome at that. If you need introductions, let me know. I don't have a lot of clout, but Captain America owes me a favor."

But since the cat is out of the proverbial bag. "Atom Eve, Indestructibelle. Or just 'Belle'. Belle, Atom Eve."

Sunny Harlow has posed:
Well, Mark -had- said that 'Belle was another viltrumite so... Sunny doesn't even blink. Perhaps she's just assumed it was known, shared, or figured out. But then, she didn't even wear a mask, much like Eve herself. "Well...as far as wanting to take people apart and see how they work, you've probably seen how some people react to aliens."

Adjusting her attention away from sweets, she nods in agreement at Mark's words before introductions come to full and she extends a hand for the classic handsake past their food. "Nice to meet you!"

Eve Wilkins has posed:
"Well, I can swing by sometime, talk to them, everything," says Eve, a small smile on her face.

"Doesn't have to be a sales pitch, but more of a hangout time, and if it's natural... it's natural," she says, with a little shrug of her shoulder as she takes in that information. "You're getting faster. Lots of practice in," she says.

Or Viltrumites got stronger the longer they lived, but Eve keeps that little bit of information at bay.

"Worst-kept secret identity in the world. I'm pretty sure most of America and certainly all the governments know who I am by now," she says.

She gives Sunny's hand a soft squeeze, with that shake. "Nice to meet you too," she says. She seemed to be done with her mostly melty ice cream by now. "It was good to catch up with you both - I think I need to start heading out, though. Got another meeting in a few," she says with a sigh.

Mark Grayson has posed:
"Busy, busy." Mark says, rising up for a moment after he waits for Sunny to scoot over. Once Eve is back on her feet, he gives her another embrace, this one a bit longer than the first. "Don't be a stranger, and don't make your next birthday the next time I see you, okay?" he asks with a hint of concern. "I'm glad you're back."

With that, he moves back to rejoin Sunny so they can finish off their ice cream.