19468/Krampusnacht 2024

Krampusnacht 2024
Date of Scene:	05 December 2024
Location:	Central Park
Synopsis:	Just a little Yuletide celebration!
Cast of Characters:	Clea, Emma Frost, Sam Wilson, Selene Gallio, Valeria Richards, Spiral, Kate Kane, Stirling Winchester

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Clea has posed:
Krampus has become a known figure across the world in the last five to ten years. And it is becoming popular to extend the tradition of parades for Krampusnacht to places. Even the United States loves the figure that punishes naughty children if they don't behave!

And of course the draw to dress up as the endearing creature is popular with cosplayers and others. The drinking and festive nature of the night are also a draw.

Central Park North has been closed at a few points for those that are participating in the march of the Krampus. People have went all out with the costumes for the horned one and over the beating of drums that get the crowds fired up. The sound of birch branches can be heard scraping over asphalt and concrete and the shrieks and giggles of children that run away from the guardrails that have been set up to separate crowd from participants.

There is food and drink aplenty in the line of food trucks and the little Christmas market that is selling hot pastries and hot chocolate.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma Frost has a rather strong dislike of children. And she loathes the holidays. On the other hand, her business makes a large amount of it's profits over the year from them. So that makes her tolerant of them in a 'bah, humbug' sort of way. She's here at the festivities moreso to keep an eye on a few things for the group at Xavier's - there are always going to be other mutants here, and in these sorts of locales mutants can become targets.

So Emma is just ready to be subtly on hand to help soothe any tensions. It's the end of the world as they know it as far as the planet knows, so that's an easy thing to justify after all.

As she goes by some of the children that normally would be screeching, Emma would muse casually, "If only some of them could be thrown into bags and vanish.."

Sam Wilson has posed:
Dressed in a warm leather jacket, jeans, boots and a stocking cap, Sam is wearing sunglasses to further disguise his identity. Morrigan had told him about Krampus and what it was all about. But she had been away tonight, and well, it's a chance for Sam to find some little gifts and things for her.

And to take in the atmosphere. A street festival was perfect for that, just to soak in the atmosphere, get some good food and just mingle about.

Selene Gallio has posed:
Such good cheer and heartfelt feeling, such a merry winter tradition, with a hint of spooky Halloween thrown in to be marketed to the drooling little brats making their chittering noises not so very far away. Merry little things. How they would sizzle, if Selene had her way.

She was feeling just a bit hungry, but not for anything so material as that. Life itself called to her, succubus and vampire and goddess of death. She wears a dramatic long dress, leather snug enough to show the outline of her hips. Her black hair is slicked straight back, face pale, lips red, eyes black as night. Something akin to a Cenobite, for those with the fearful knowledge of their ken, but something else entirely, if perhaps of the same dark genus.

Still, this was a night for a child-stealer, a mirthful softening of a grim truth, a predatory thing that lurked no doubt, somewhere watching. Children had made such songs about Selene, back in Nova Roma. Fearful little incantations, warding away the Goddess of Death, spelling her name rather than daring to speak it. She heard them anyway. And when she heard one, she had always made sure to reward the performer with the gift they clearly so very much wanted. Her attention.

Poor little things.

She stands still and aware, unnoticed largely only of her own accord, her mind subtly pushing attention away from her. She is not showing off with her garish appearance. This is just what she wears on Thursday.

For now, she would watch. Unless something drew her attention.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Why should Santa be the only one to get all the fun? Krampus used to play a vital roll in the whole mess of traditions. Valeria Richards might possibly have a weird eye on some things like the Naughty and Nice lists.

So being the social media darling she really doesn't like being, under duress from her publicist. She's at the festival, sort of flying Fantastic Four flags. Even if if she's more in Latverian green with her jacket over a silly Christmas Sweater in more Fantastic Four trappings.

The jeans she wears with comfy blue boots with lambskin lining peeking out keeping her lower half warm while she pauses every so often to take selfies.

"You know the whole naughty kids only get coal thing was really only meant to pacify rich kids. Poorer families might have wanted to foster some naughtiness with their own hoards of kids just to get enough coal to not freeze to death." she points out into her cell phone camera, doing her darndest to seem vapid despite being a super genius.

Spiral has posed:
When Spiral heard there was going to be a parade for some demon, her interest was piqued. A little badgering for extra information conveyed to her that child sacrifice was involved, her curiosity was really locked in. Bad info or not, she's more committed to helping to celebrate something so obviously eventful. Keeping in constant motion is how to live her life, and a chaser to that heady draught is spectacle. Entertainment must always be boosted.

One of the pros of people dressing up is she doesn't have to dress down, or use illusions to become more mundane as most muggles. So she's come, with the fur lined boots...with hooves. More of that leather and fur-trim along her many arms and whatnot. A audacious pair of curled horns appearing to sprout from her temples like an eeeevil ram. Over her back is a blue barrel.

And there's half a dozen lively funko-pop evil imps using her slung barrel as a perch and playground. She's really starting to regret this extra bit of flair.

"I. Will. TurnYouAllIntoJaaaaam." she hisses towards her passengers, though perhaps this overheard threat will have a few kids nearby get a little anxious.

Suddenly catching the scent of something on the wind, Spiral's head jerks up and she peers around, Deer-in-the-headlights look. Could be cinnabuns. Could be eldritch.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate Kane decided to dress down a bit, wearing an "Ugly Sweater" with Krampus menacing children against a black background over her athletic frame. Her red hair is loose at the moment, hanging down just past her shoulders, and she's also wearing a pair of well-worn black jeans and not looking anything like a millionaire CEO of any kind. Just another partygoer to have some fun with Krampusing, really.

Sipping a cup of hot cider, she grins at the kids running amok, seeming not to mind the shrieking at all as she chuckles, shaking her head a little as she glances around. Apparently she might be keeping an eye out for trouble...

Stirling Winchester has posed:
What a great time to be alive! The holiday season in Central Park! Things are grand and Stirling Winchester is loving his life. His superheroing is going fairly well. He got to train with Amazons! Hell, he's even got a new roommate.

Tonight he's not in costume. At least not yet. It's been a pretty peaceful Thursday so far and Pathfinder can take a night off. With the beginnings of a smile on his face Stirling scans the event, letting his senses alert him to anything of interest.

As people move around him Stirling nimbly dodges them on his way towards one of the food trucks. His sense of smell has alerted our hero to the presence of something that's piqued his interest. Falafel.

This evening is fairly chilly and Stirling is the type of nerd to refer to clothing as concealment garments. As in, he can carry a bunch of concealed weapons under his black wool peacoat. Additionally, he thinks it makes him look dashing.

Clea has posed:
Clea's hard to miss. She's the tall white haired woman with a flaming crown. But she's also sitting in one of the boughs of a tree that's not too far from the parade. She's dressed in clothing that doesn't fit in with the weather currently. Not like she feels it.

"He's not even a demon." she tells Wong who is observing from below. "Or I guess some think he is. He's just anthropomorphic. Why does everything with horns equate to 'evil' with humans?" she asks her fellow sorcerer.

Emma Frost has posed:
And then Emma Frost catches sight of two of her most hated things. One instigator of total anarchy and chaos, the other a succubus that in her mind qualifies as an eldritch being. Lovely. So she has two things to keep distant track of tonight. Spiral, at least should get enough attention to not do anything too out of line.. But Selene she would keep an eye on just in case anyone might 'vanish' as a midnight snack.

This is going to be one of those nights, it seems. At least mot of the others will hopefully enjoy themselves while Emma goes to channel her inner Scrooge. Bah, humbug. She hates the holidays.

Oh well, at least she has a project now to keep her occupied.

Selene Gallio has posed:
Selene Gallio was across the street a moment ago but now she's standing just behind Spiral. That scent, of course, was death itself. That scent, of course, was Selene.

"Not the monster I was expecting tonight. Hello, thing," she says to the multi-armed cyberwitch.

"Don't worry about Frost. She's nothing," she says, nodding across to the blonde woman when she looks towards them. Selene's black-lipped sneer is pure contempt, a sharp contrast to the white of her teeth, canines sharp.

"Do you think we'll get any mayhem tonight? Any bloodshed. I do hope so," she says, her voice husky, like her vocal cords are made of parchment.

Valeria Richards has posed:
Sure some people she knows gets snappoints in greeting while everyone seems to be entangled with three festivities. Though she doesn't snap pictures of anyone not already trying to photobomb her.

"And the encouraging of family togetherness is likely something that sprung up from the poorer elements of society, since not losing family members due to cold, illness, starvation, the oppressive nature of capitalists in a time where labor laws were considered a joke. Was often a gift in itself." she goes on to narrate. The young blonde woman might possibly be well aware how she sounds being as thoroughly loaded as she is.

At least she isn't rolling the camera when Clea queries about horns. "Evil or food. Old religious types aren't the most of imaginative types. Half of what they espouse is stolen from other faiths. Even modern versions of Santa Clause are just corporate advertising. Modern Christmas is about as much a holiday as anything cooked up by greeting card companies. Just by a soda drink company this time." she points out with a grin.

Spiral has posed:
Spiral's imps, whether purely illusory magic, abducted critters or cybertoys, get one look at Selene and make for the bottom of the barrel. The terrified gibbering fills their own personal echo chamber before the sheer mass of their tiny bodies plugs the container and they make like cowering jawas.

Spiral's lips press tightly together as she turns just enough to side-eye Selene. "My name is..." Clearing her throat, she curls her lip and tries again. "My name is not thing."

The six-armed sorceress casts a quick look over towards Emma before regarding one of the eldest of mutantkind. "Lots of things can happen in a crowd." Spiral says cryptically. "I was going to hand out flash drives to help with free streaming...channels. But I think I need to work on my delivery method to align with the times. Such as they are."

A pair of hands on hips and a sway to jostle her barrel of bad ideas. "Perhaps if this was a parade for ~you~. How many parades have there been? Why aren't there any now? Would you like a parade?" But then she starts to imagine a few, and her head tilts hard, like a bird, as her imagination tries to fill in the blanks.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate flashes a grin over at Valeria, overhearing the last bits of that conversation, "See, that's why Hanukkah is better. Just beat the daylights out of the ancient Greeks and Syrians and then rededicate the Temple, but it has a bunch of dreidels so no one asks much questions about it." She chuckles a bit wryly at that, and offers a wave to those present.

"Though really, I'm just hoping we don't have an actual Krampus showing up. Considering this is New York, I'd put the actual odds of that to be better than even, truthfully." Her eyes dance a little at that, as she glances back and forth a bit melodramatically.

Emma Frost has posed:
Pressing into Selene's mind was almost impossible if not entirely that way during Emma's best, Spiral's consciousness operated on another level of reality in a literal sense. Even trying to go there would lead to one being swallowed up as if they were going to be spat into Mojo's mindscape itself.

So best she could do now was glower at the two from a distance while keeping an eye on them. Selene wouldn't overstep that much and Emma was guessing that the witch would probably grab someone and wander out with them later, when the festivities were finishing. THere was precious little she could do beyond closing her eyes and murmuring to herself. <<Dammit>>

Emma took out a breath and then would move to wander off some, seemingly having given up on being able to do much fo anything here when it cam eto trying to keep up with anything the murderous pair (or one) might galivate towards

Clea has posed:
Clea smiles when she hears Valeria, "Miss Richards, I haven't seen you since..." she trails off, "I'm not making myself sad tonight." she muses. Not wanting to bring up Victor. "How are you?" she asks.

Wong gives a grin to Valeria, "That sounds about right, actually." the man states with a nod and then looks up to Clea with a roll of his eyes. "So moody." he sighs.

Selene Gallio has posed:
"I am sure you have had many names, for all your many parts. Potpourri, you should be called. Or Hodgepodge. Or Motley. That's a good old fashioned word. Motley. A tatter, like a doll sewn together by a blind, mad child. So, yes, you're right. You're not a thing. You're Things."

Selene's casual cruelty brings a smile to her face, as does the sight of Emma Frost backing down from her. As it should be. She clicks her nails against one another, reminiscent of claws, black blades at the tips of her fingers, sharp enough for surgery.

"Be wary, though, there are whiter knights in play tonight," she says. Selene's potent enough to sense Clea's raw power. Faltines are not to be toyed with. "You should just watch tonight, Things. Better than to draw too much attention. Someone might want to take a doll home to play with."

Valeria Richards has posed:
"My Uncle Ben would agree with you. Holidays that last over a week have their benefits. And putting stock in old priests about what is evil or not tends to go out the window when they deities of other cultures turned out to be real, the heavenly host actually turned out to be wanting to conquer and oppress the world no different than any other would be despot." Val adds her own agreement to Kate.

Clea gets smiles. "I am doing well enough. Got to undo some loss recently." That being the resurrection of her own mother. "Just need to make sure we have a planet still." she leaves out any mention of Uncle Doom herself.

That man comes and goes on his own whims like a housecat that gets let outside.

There are the occasional smirks as she catches bits and pieces of what's going on in Selene's orbit.

Stirling Winchester has posed:
Once his quest for falafel has been satisfied, Stirling starts milling about in the crowd. He munches, little bites at a time to savor the flavor of his food, keeping his senses out for excitement. A trio of small children playing Tag run right at the veteran who deftly sidesteps the kids mid-chomp. Of course, this might end up putting him right in line so that he's somehow directly between Selene and Emma. Right smack in their eyeline.

There's a sudden strange movement in Stirling, like he feels a sudden chill. "Tia, you gotta stop doing that," is spoken very softly before being chased by a sigh. "Oh," more nearly inaudible speech. "No... I don't have the evil eye bracelet you gave me when I was an infant." A brief flash of frustration crosses his face, soft speech continues a moment later, "I don't care if Lucifer himself is here, unless he whips out a flaming sword I'm not going to do anything other than watch a fake demon steal children and find funnel cake and hot chocolate and maybe talk to someone who is still alive."

"I love you, but shut up," Stirling lets the words out in a very deep breath, closing his eyes as he does so.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate gives Valeria a closer look, then grins a bit wider, "Oh, /that/ Uncle Ben!" She laughs a bit, "Yeah, tell him he still owes me a dozen knishes from the last poker night we had, too." She smiles warmly at Val, "Though, I don't think we've met. Kate Kane." With that, she extends a hand towards Val, giving her a friendly nod.

Spiral has posed:
Spiral reaches up and fidgets with her horns. They're on there pretty good. The shade she's getting layered under by Selene's delivery makes the stupid goaty things itch terribly around where horns meet flesh. Nostrils flaring, all she needs now is a little billy goat's tuft of hair under her chin. Huff-puff.

The sorceress' lip curls upwards to display her unnatural pearly whites. Too well manufactured to be natural, a byproduct of her creation. Which doesn't help with being reminded of such in the here and now. "I'm unique." she grinds her teeth and reaches back to stab into her barrel with a stick. The ol trickle-down theory of punching downwards when you're catching licks yourself. She's not rewarded by loud squeals as the things she brought have all decided to abandon ship and frig off to their own dimension. They don't want to be at ground zero for anything potentially serious.

And just like that, Selene has swerved the conversation to something outward rather than inward. It has Spiral immediately looking around for these things she should be wary of. Unsubtle she certainly ain't. "I do what I want. I don't have strings to the spineless anymore and no hands up the back of my shirt." she tries a boastful snort on for size. "...I was just gonna watch anyways, promise." she says a little sulkily now. Her mood shifting abruptly.

Emma Frost has posed:
Valeria is fortunately there as a backup as is Clea. Emma only knows the Faltine by reputation, but she's a solid enough sorceress that hopefully she can keep an eye on things. Now Emma's going to work on a rather tricky telepathic trick. Thoughts would be 'bent' around her, slightly nudged away from notice. She's unimportant, she's ignored. Her telepathic presence in turn slightly turns attention away from her and other thinsg around her are more involved as well as awareness would hopefully be bent over her form.

It's the telepathic version of a Somebody Else's Problem field.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"I think there's a few in the fridge. Like a whole tub of them. We can totally make that happen.". It might possibly sound a lot flirtier than expected. Whether or not Ben would agree to it is a different matter, but raiding the fridge and claiming her family's leftovers is something Valeria is never really apologetic about.

"Valeria Richards. Val works fine!" she beams and accepts Kate's hand in greeting. Big smile on the blonde's lips. Once the hand is free it goes right to moving hair away from blue eyes.

While they might not have actually met face to face, Val and Kate might have occasionally seen each other in overlapping social circles. The pouting and taunting between Spiral and Selene getting a chuckle. "Those two should totally just go get themselves a pocket dimension. If because I expect the Hellfire Club might not want to pay for cleaning up after them." she teases playfully at the more mystical pair.

Clea has posed:
Clea's got the spatial awareness to realize there are other powerful beings watching the festivities. She's also a 'leave things alone if they aren't broken'. No one has tried to eat a child or an adult, so she's chill!

Val gets a soft nod, "I did see that Sue had died...and then was resurrected, for that I am glad." she tells the young woman.

Then she looks over curiously to where Sterling is having his conversation. Maybe it was rude to stare? No one had taught her that yet!

Selene Gallio has posed:
"On, don't think I'm discouraging. You should go on a reign of terror sometime soon. I think it would be good for you. Splatter a few mortals here and there. Really give in to your creative urges. I could be a muse for you."

"And of course you're a puppet. Most things are. This is a world of puppets, most of them can't feel the strings. Be grateful you can. You're more alive than they are, because you have been dead. They are all still asleep."

"I will wake them all in time."

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate snickers at Val's observation, "Oh, absolutely. There's definitely some vibes between those two. What sort of vibes, I'm not sure I want to guess at." She grins at Val, giving her a wry look, "But yeah, I thought I recognized you Val. I normally don't come over too often, but I do like to crash the occasional poker game Ben has when I can." Which is a time honored tradition, really, at least among certain circles.

And might communicate to Val that Kate is probably more than she appears, considering most of those circles tend to be the cape-and-spandex crowd. Not the idle rich crowd.

Stirling Winchester has posed:
With his super senses going Stirling looks over and his eyes settle on the person staring at him. Clea is given a quick look over, then a smile. Hell, Stirling even glances from left to right to see if perhaps she's looking at someone else nearby. "Lo siento, tia," more very soft speaking. "I feel like I am drawing attention to myself by talking to you right now. We need to discuss boundaries at a later date."

Then he'll close his mouth and stroll in Clea's direction, lifting a hand up near his shoulder in a little wave, "Good evening. My name is Stirling."

Spiral has posed:
Spiral muses over this. "...I really should go on a reign of terror sometime soon..." she almost parrots perfectly. First one, then another finger starts strumming her bottom lip. ~blip blap blip~

She nearly chomps the end of those fingertips as things veer again and the conversation trolley changes tracks. She hisses, "You're awfully sure of yourself."

She starts scratching at herself, threatening to raise hives and irritations. Obviously she's been still too long again, lurking and watching. When you slow down, all those icky molecules have a better chance of sticking and weighing you down. Like consequences and karma, things like that are yucky. Best to stay ahead of them.

Spiral re-shoulders her empty barrel of not-monkeys and sniffs in what she assumes appears haughty. "Good. When you've got them all woken up, then their eyes will be wide open. Then I'll splash and pour and hose those peepers with so much ~content~ they'll be begging to cut off their own eyelids."

Spirals starts to stalk off, clip-clopping with her hooves like she's wearing a pair of coconuts.

Valeria Richards has posed:
"Funnily enough I am banned from just about every gaming table and casino on the planet." This even includes Ben Grimm's. The blonde's math is just too strong sometimes. "Thankfully I still get to Gotham every now and again. But I don't always get to do the fun stuff."

Having to fly the rich girl flag during Wayne family stuff is one thing. It's clear she does sometimes miss the Bat stuff since she broke up with Jason. "Think I might have more reason to show up now!" she adds with that playful tone.

Kate Kane has posed:
Kate gives Val a grin, "Not a problem, but hey, you're always welcome to come up as far as I'm concerned. Besides, I still need to grab those knishes." She gives Val a wink, "Catch you later Valeria." With that, the redhead saunters off, giving Clea a cheerful wave as she goes.

Clea has posed:
Clea floats down from the tree branch she was seated on and decides that she doesn't have to scare everyone but ignoring gravity. She extends a hand to Stirling, "I'm Clea. Pleased to meet you." she offers the man.

The other hand raises to wave to Kate and to give a wave to Valeria as well. Not wanting to be rude!

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"Are you a witch? Because I am enchanted by you," Stirling delivers with a smile, taking the offered hand for a firm, friendly shake. He's been trying out the line with many of the people he meets, as he finds it to be amusing.

"I noticed you looking at me and I wanted to ask why," he says simply. "Is it the talking to myself thing?"

Clea has posed:
Wong can be heard from behind Clea, "Does that line work?" he asks the man with an amused sort of look. "Hey if it does I'll add it to my list of pick up lines." he adds.

Clea gives a chuckle, "Sorceress, not witch." she tells him. "I find enchanting people to be a bit oppressive. I like them to act as themselves." she admits. "And yes, it was due to that. I didn't see any ghosts, so I was curious." she explains.

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"I am surprised how often it gets me talking to people," Stirling tells Wong, recognizing him with a firm, solid nod of his head. "The polar bear is also in the repertoire. Do not trust me for romantic advise, though." He shakes his head slowly from side to side, "I have typically been in a position where I had to make a few sacrifices."

Then he returns his attention to Clean, grinning when told about her calling, "A sorceress? That sounds like an amazing occupation." Then he pauses, nods his head and shrugs, "I sometimes speak to my ancestors. I hear them sometimes. Might be crazy, though."

Clea has posed:
Wong gives a good natured grunt of a laugh and then salutes the man, "Fair enough." he states. He reaches out to give Clea's shoulder a pat, "Don't take any romantic advice." he tells her. Then he's wandering off to go find a hot chocolate as well.

"Oh I was born a Sorceress. My occupation is being an Avenger...or that's what they tell me it is." she shrugs to that.

"So you aren't being haunted? You can hear them sometimes? I'm not from Earth, so I'm still trying to get all of the nuances of the unseen sometimes." she admits.

Stirling Winchester has posed:
"You're an Avenger?" Stirling sounds quite impressed! "That's a very important occupation on Earth. It's a big deal to be an Avenger. A lot of responsibility."

With a big smile and little head shake he says, "Not so much a haunting, I don't think. My uncle seems to take my threat to get him exorcised seriously, but if I'm being honest I don't think either of us thinks it'll work."

Something seems to make him chuckle, "My aunt says she could help you. She's a witch. A dead witch, so extra useful probably." A momentary pause, "Anyway, it is not common. Apparently, there was some magic involved and now my ancestors and I are much closer than normal."

Clea has posed:
Clea nods her head, her white hair bouncing a little when she does. "It seems to be the best fit for me. Not like I can work at Starbucks." she admits. "Plus SHIELD doesn't like very high powered beings off the grid." she chuckles.

She listens to him curiously, "Well...I'd suggest not doing that, just on the off chance it did work. You'd feel a lot of guilt if he went away I bet." she comments.

There is a smile to what his Aunt said, "I am honored by the offer of help, but Witchcraft and Sorcery are very different paths...and I'm over 1,000...so trying to teach me a new magical system would be unwise I think." she admits.

"I think it's a nice gift...to be able to speak with your ancestors and family. I don't have any of those." she muses.

"Wong leaves me for five minutes and I turn all mopey. I'm trying to be better about that." she states.