18391/Business Dealings in District X

Business Dealings in District X
Date of Scene:	22 June 2024
Location:	West Bushwick (Mutant Town)
Synopsis:	A chance encounter in mutnat town leads to a discussion of training, parents and - fighting vampires alongside The Batman?!
Cast of Characters:	Bishop, Allen-James

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Bishop has posed:
Evening in Mutant Town

For some, it's closing time and time to hurry home through the safest routes and brightest streets possible.
For others, it's closing tiem and time to hurry home through alleys, unlit and poorly secured areas that lack the safety and security afforded to those with better living conditions and finaces available.

For others the day is just getting started. Bars, clubs, and other business opportunities or stores that have late hours to serve clientale who don't follow the usual patterns of daylight and night time.

And still for a few more....really the day never stops. Day or night..they're always 'on' and Lucas Bishop is one of those invididuals.

A large motorcycle is parked just outside of the police precient and the sizable mutant future-cop soon emerges from its doors to begin an angry descent down the stairs for the stree levels. His usual X-Men uniform has been traded in for a grey tank top, dark slacks, red tinted sun glasses and several belts across his waist, some with pouches containing who knows what. His X.S.E. blaster rifles and armaments are visible on his bike as well and his 'X' badget is likewise visible on his belt. Seems he came for business and it was business that did not leave him in a cheerful mood.

Allen-James has posed:
    AJ is in Mutant Town for a rather less.. official capacity. He needs clothes. Affordable but nice. He's heard that there's a tailor in Mutant Town can literally fabricate bespoke clothes in minutes, since they have some strange cloth related super power. Since he's thinking about trying to talk to his parents.. the bum look he's been sporting just won't do. So, he's gotten some cash, and come down here to get some clothes. He is emerging from the store, bags in hand, when he spots Bishop coming out of the police building.

    "Hey, boss. Everything ok?" he asks, shifting his bags from both hands, to one, so that he can wave to Bishop.

Bishop has posed:
By the time he's reached his bike, Bishop has a smartphone out and is busy flipping through its screens.

At least one presumes it's a smart phone. With the Shiar tech and the likes of Hank and Forge on hand at the Institute the phone could very well be a tricorder-phaser-uber locater for all anyone knows....but either way it holds his attention until he hears a familiar voice and he glances up in startled surprise.

"AJ! What are you doing out and about?"

The bags should say the obvious of course and Bishop does observe them but he slips his phone back into his pockets and instead looks to the younger mutant for futher context. "Did you come all this way by yourself....? And to answer your quesiton, no. The local precient is seeing fit to give me some difficulties in getting to a prisoner in their custody."

He grunts a little bit, setting a heavy hand onto his bike as he slips a leg over it to take a seat. "...As usual."

Allen-James has posed:
    "I'm shopping." AJ says, hefting his bags with a 'duh' sort of smirk. "I heard there was a tailor here who could do fast bespoke work. I..." He hesitates, thinking hard of how to say these things. "I have been hanging out with Damian Wayne a lot, lately." he announces. As if hanging out with one of the richest young men in Gotham.. and the country... was a normal thing.

    "It's made me think about my family. I'm thinking about calling them, maybe going to see them. For that, I can't.. well... look like this." he gestures. His current outfit of light grey hoodie, beat up jeans, and intentionally mismatched shoes does not look like the sort of thing you should wear to meet any family which is hyphenated.

    "A prisoner? Why not call in the Professor, or one of the others? I'm sure a little persuasion would do the trick." AJ says with a smirk. "Heck, Miss Grey could probably do it without any tricks."

Bishop has posed:
'Damian Wayne?"

It would seem that today is a day for the obvious to be missed by the large man as he doesn't quite connect the dots yet. Then again, he is from the future albiet some four years or so removed. Every billionaire playboy and their spawn doesn't immediately cross his radar or stay with him for quick recall.

So he gives no overt reaction to that and instead focuses his attention on the purpose of AJ's field trip here to begin with.

"If you needed new clothes, I'm sure someone back at the Institute would have assisted. You're a resident now, after all... That being said, you seem a little hesitant. Are you sure this is something you'd like to do? GIven what you've been through I can understand wanting to take it more slowly.."

There's a beat and he finally arcs an eyebrow as if making a conneciton at last.

"Damian Wayne...? As in Wayne ENterprises, Wayne? How did you make that particular connection? Gotham isn't exactly five minutes away either."

Allen-James has posed:
"I got these clothes from the school." AJ points out. "I chose them cause they're comfortable. But I don't need comfortable. I need tailored fit. My family may not be Waynes, but we have standards." he says with a smirk.

    "High standards. Standards that I don't meet any more. I'm... nervous. Nervous about what my parents will think, and who they'll see... They... They loved me. Love me, I hope. I ran away because they wanted to 'fix' me. But they wanted to 'Fix' me because they cared for me, and thought that my gifts were a curse. They wanted to do the best thing they could for me. We just.. didn't agree as to what that was." he explains. "If I call them.. if I go to see them... They're going to want me to come home. I know they will. I want to be able to show them that I'm doing OK."

    He chuckles as Bishop catches up about the Wayne in the room.

    "He was in New York, and I was in the park, playing Violin. Taking some time off training." The training that he's been pushing pretty hard lately.

    "He heard me playing, and came over, and... well.. we hit it off. I ah... I think I'm his boyfriend now." he says with a wistful smile. "Pretty sure. I should probably ask some time soon, but.. I don't want to scare him off. I've been riding the Hyperloop down to see him a lot. It's going to get harder once I start college next year. I'm thinking of maybe getting my own place somewhere I can get to the Mansion and Gotham easily. Maybe even buying my own car or bike. You know. If I get my trust fund back. Or, if I ask Damian for one, I'll probably end up with a Bently.

Bishop has posed:
A mix of studious concern and bemusement creases through Bishop's features as AJ tells his story and provides more context for him. Eventually he folds ihsi large arms and leans forward to rest on the bars of the bike, clearly thinking and pondering heavily on this information.

Finally he nods his head and his deep voice acknowledges, "You have been pushing yourself. I think that you've progressed incredibly far and in a short period of time. Your willingness to put yourself out there to help others is also to be commended and celebrated. When I agreed to help you and to accelerat your training I did so with an eye on making sure that I wasn't filling your head with unreasonable expectations or the thought that you were going to run out there and jump infront of whatever trouble making mutant or meta happened to come your way...."

He pauses and then says, "But you didn't. You've acted responsiblty while also being willing to put others first and act in service to people in need. I think, AJ, that your parents have good reason to want to be proud of you and simply lack the understanding that they need. I would suggest that maybe they shoudl come to the Institute but it' s not exactly a public place ...but perhaps having smoeone with you or nearby to offer you some support when you go to see them might not be a bad idea."

Lest he think he's suggesting himself, he quickly adds, "Patty, perhaps." Bishop would just terrify them. A 6'6", massive, dour, dark man with an 'M' tattoo? Yeah not ideal for getting people to relax when they are tense.

"You're better equipped now. With knowledge. Knowledge they don't have... but if you love them and they love you then both of you deserve each other and they deserve to at leas tknow you're alright. Maybe take it slow. A phone call at first...until you're ready to present yourself as you are."

Allen-James has posed:
As he's told he's been 'acting responsibly', AJ can't help but blush a little, thinking about the little Vampire Excursion that he probably wasn't ready for, but went on anyway. He was lucky he got away with just a black eye from that one. The borrowed bat armor helped.

    "Ah. yeah. Responsibly. I.." he takes a moment to collect his thoughts.

    "I mean.. I guess the shopping is just.. another way for me to push things back a day or two, you know? I'm... nervous. Afraid. What will they say? I... I did a lot of things I'm not proud of, to survive. Only luck and circumstances led me here, and I don't really want them to know about all the bad stuff. I don't want them to blame themselves, or see me... differently. But I am different. And I just..." he sighs. "I'm trying to work myself up to call them. It's intimidating. But I'll do it soon." he chuckles darkly and shakes his head, "I mean, if I don't, they're liable to hear about me from some gossip. You don't hang out with a Wayne without getting attention from the upper crust."

Bishop has posed:
"Then it seems you've got a ticking clock." responds Bishop candidly. "Perhaps that's a good thing. We do easily say to take your time and take it slow but sometimes we have to just step forward and go for it. You certainly have good reason to be cautious but...you raise a good point. You may end up simply needing to dive in."

He then eyes AJ, inclining his head slightly. He 'heard' that hesitation after all.

"You -have- been acting responsibly...correct?"

Allen-James has posed:
AJ coughs, face flushing as he uhms, "I haven't been irresponsible. I may have... found some other.. heroes who I helped with a situation. It showed me... that I'm definitely not ready to do anything on my own. But... I've ah... been learning from them, as well as my training." he explains hurriedly, trying to find a way to present things that doesn't mention getting beaten on by vampires, or shot at by street thugs.

    "So.. I think I've been fairly responsible, yes. I'm not trying to take on anything solo or anything. I've only been out when I'm sure I've got backup." he says more confidently. "But... this is what I want to do with my powers."

    "You've helped me with that, and I appreciate it."

Bishop has posed:
"You do know that back home I worked in law enforcemnt and investigation." says Bishop with a wry smirk, "So naturally you wouldn't be trying to keep anything from me or make assumptions about what I know and don't know.."

A bluff? Maybe, maybe not. He wouldn't be a future-cop and enforcer commander if he just gave away all his cards.

"I know you want to use your powers to help othes. I did as well. Just be careful. Although we may seem prone to run around and have a blind eye turned towards our activities...vigilantism -isn't- legal and it's one thing to go looking for trouble nad another to see something happening and act as a good Samaritan. I just don't want to see you getting hurt and over estimating what you're capable of."

He then shrugs, "But...you're still here, walking, and full of ambition so I suppose those are all good signs. I'll have to accept that....so you're welcome..."

Allen-James has posed:
AJ gives a wry smile, before looking around the area, before deciding to lower his voice some.

     "I may have ended up in a fight with some Vampires." he says with a sigh, and a shake of his head, "I don't know if I'd rush out to do that again. They're... dangerous in ways I wasn't ready for. I was the least ready person in that room. I think I did ok for myself, but... I messed up some things, and made a bad call at the end. I got out of position, and an opponent got past me."

    He sounds regretful. "I've been working on situational awareness drills. Making the right calls in combat is... hard." he says softly, and sighs, looking down at his bags. "I know that comes with experience. But everyone else there was... is... augh. So experienced. They're all insanely experienced." he shakes his head. "But no one died, and I only got a black eye, so clearly I didn't screw up too bad."

Bishop has posed:
"Mmm...."

AJ would know that rumble. Bishop is displeased. But, perhaps, not necessarily at him. At least directly.

"Vampires...? Strange..." He rubs his jaw as he sits up, his movements creaking his bike as he narrows his eyes darkly. "Well...first...good job on not becoming a vampire and at recognizing when you were out of your league. Stranger things then vampires are around but you can't do everything or be everywhere, AJ. It's not just you..who is on the line in situations like that. Someone that has to drop what they're doing to come to your aid because you've in over your head--? These things can happen, we look out for each other but it doens't help when we are in situations that we have no business being in. Just try and remember that..."

He quiets now, frowning pensively, "That girl who was in the medbay when you were getting your blood drawn by Henry? She was a hairs breadth away from being killed. It can happen that fast...that easily.."

Is he having second thoughts now about pushing AJ? His frown might seem to imply that - but then it fades and he actually begins to give the other mutant a slight smile before looking away. "Who else was there?"

Allen-James has posed:
    "Well.. You know.. I've been hanging out in Gotham a lot." AJ says quietly. "I.. kinda helped some people out, and ended up meeting Robin and he introduced me to Batman, and I kind of ended up going out with the Bat folks to fight the vampires in Gotham." That all hangs together about as well as a tent on a flagpole. It's the truth, from certain angles, but not the whole truth. Of course, he can't explain the whole truth due to Secrets.

    "We were doing well. They let me take some power armor designed just for fighting the vampires, and some gadgets. Turns out UV grenades are super useful." he admits, "Then this Queen Vampire showed up. She was stronger. Faster. She grabbed one of them, knocked her out, and threw her at me. I caught her, but... I should have stayed in position. One of the others could have caught the girl. I should have been there to deflect the Queen away from Robin. She hit him, and... I thought he was going to die. His armor held up, but.." he shakes his head.

    "I was out of position." he says softly, again, almost haunted by it, fingers gripping his bag again. What he doesn't say is that the Queen would have gone through him like a hot knife through butter. That if he hadn't been out of position, he'd likely have been hurt far worse than a black eye.

    "Batman ambushed her. Drove her back. I think they've cleared out of Gotham, for now, but..." he shrugs, "I need... I need to be better, before I go leaping into anything like that again."

Bishop has posed:
"You accompanied -Batman- on a mission to fight -vampires-?"

Well now, indeed, there is some confusion there and actual alarm now. He may not know who the specifics of the Wayne family are but Gotham and Batman? That he knows.

"AJ..." Bishop doesn't seem sure on what to say at first or how to truly react. So he pauses and takes a deep breath and then narrows his eyes.

"Between Patty ending up on a mission against AIM Scientists and The Juggernaut and now you fighting vampires in Gotham aside The Bat...." He shakes his head again but then seems to focus his attention on other elements of the story, "And they gave you equipment? -Power armor-? Just flat out gave it to you?"

He pauses again and then finally says, "Well....At least you acknowledge your limitations. You have them. So..this was a good lesson for you and...a good motivation to keep working hard at expanding your limits. You have the courage, there's no doubt there, but understanding your powers and just what you can and should be doing...should stay the priority. "

Allen-James has posed:
"Loaned it to me." AJ said with a chuckle. "I mean, I might be able to borrow it again, but Batman would /definitely/ want to know why." he finds that amusing, thinking back to Batman, and how it would feel to ask to borrow the power armor again.

    "It did show me a lot. None of them have powers, but they fought Vampires, using technology and planning and experience. All of them were better fighters than me. Even those my age had way more experience in real fights than I have."

    AJ blinks, and backs his own train of thought up. "Wait, Patty fought against AIM? And the Juggernaut? Yeesh. OK, so, yeah, I've been being responsible compared to that." he points out. "I hope she had backup." he shakes his head.

    "Anyway... Thanks for helping with my training, and my training plan. I know you worry about us getting in over our heads. I'll try not to do anything stupid." he says with a smile.

Bishop has posed:
"I may be over stating a little bit. She as involved in an outing with Morph involving soe mutant kids in need and it turned out that AIM was there and had hired Juggernaut as added muscle. M was there as well. She didn't go looking for that level of trouble and I don't believe she actually engaged AIM or Juggernaut. The point is that you both can easily find yourselves in over your heads. Both the situation you described to me and the mission she was on could have gone very differently for you both. On the one hand..vampires...and on the other hand a man so strong they can only measure his strength in high magnitude richter scale numbers. Clearly you two are aiming for the top."

Bishop sighs and then shakes his head. "Don't ask for the armor again, I just wans't sure if you -still- had it. AJ...these people have been doing what they've been doing for -years- or have powers and abilities suited for it. It's understandable if you'd feel inadequate against that. It was a situation you shouldnt' have been in to begin with but...you survived and contributed. That counds for a lot and more will come to you. As I told you before when we started training in earnest...take it all one step at a time. That's all we can do."

With that, he revvs his bike. The chopper rumbling to life, "I take it you have your own way back to Westchester? I have more business to attend to here in District X."

Allen-James has posed:
    "I'm going to. Take it one step at a time. But I'm going to be as good as them." AJ says confidently. Ambitiously, his determination burning in his voice. "I won't rush things, but I'm training to fight beside them."


    He nods at the question though, hefting his bags, "Oh, yeah, I've got a ride back. I should get going, in fact, if I want to catch up to it. Stay safe." he says with a wry smirk, joking in his voice at the 'stay safe'. "Thanks for talking to me."