5865/A Penthouse Visit

A Penthouse Visit
Date of Scene:	06 April 2021
Location:	Warren's Penthouse
Synopsis:	Franklin stops by to see Kitty and the two do a little catching up.
Cast of Characters:	Kitty Pryde, Franklin Richards

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Kitty Pryde has posed:
It had been awhile since Kitty and Franklin had seen each other in person. Though occasional emails and texts continued to be exchanged between the two friends.

Today Kitty was tooling around the penthouse with Lockheed, while Warren was off dealing with work. As Kitty sat in the living room, she'd looked up at the Christmas present she'd gotten Warren. An electronic picture frame loaded with images of people that Warren had personally saved over the years, as well as a follow up picture or news article or social media post from the person where possible, to tell Warren what they'd gone on to do after their being saved.

As she sees one face come across the picture frame, Kitty remembers the mission. One that Franklin Richards was on with them. It made her smile, and figuring she was cooped up alone for awhile, she texted Franklin to see if he had free time to meet up. When she sent the address, it might have come as a bit of a surprise, whether not knowing whose place it was, or why Kitty is having him meet her there even if he does. The security in the lobby are waiting for Franklin to send him up in the elevator, which dings when it reaches the penthouse.

Franklin Richards has posed:
    Franklin arrives in the lobby five minutes before the scheduled time, fretting over his hair in front of one of its mirrors. He hadn't seen alumni of Xavier's since Genosha. Once the threat on mutantkind passed, threats on other planets or dimensions that demanded the Fantastic Four's attention aroused, and he was whisked off to space again, following his family.

The elevator dings, and Franklin brushes back his gelled haircut as he steps out in the penthouse. He's dressed in lights jeans, a black sweater, with a crisp white shirt underneath. "Nice place, Kitty," he greets, with a teasing smile. The address had certainly come as a surprise, but he hasn't done the research to know its owner. "Upgrading from Xavier's?"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty's wearing a pair of shorts and a t-shirt celebrating the last time the Chicago Cubs won the World Series, her hair pulled back in a pony tail. When she hears the chime over the elevator, she scurries over to it, and when Franklin steps off, he'd better be quick if he doesn't want to be subject to a great big hug from Kitty.

"Oh it's been too long," she tells him with a grin, letting go of him. "Come in, come in. And... ah, yes, suppose it is a big of an upgrade at that," she agrees. Not that the school wasn't itself a pretty glamorous place compared to the little house in Deerfield where she grew up. "Warren's place," she tells him. "He's off working on some deal with... ah.. think it's the aviation part of the business," she says with as shrug. "Come in. Can I get you a drink? Or want a bit of a tour? I suppose the view probably is about what you're used to at your parent's building," she says.

Franklin Richards has posed:
    "It has been," Franklin returns the hug and follows Kitty inside. "Sure, you can show me around. And just water's fine. Uncle Johnny caught me drunk at some event in an art museum a week ago, and it did not go down well with Mom." He chuckles. "It was my first hangover, actually."

    "So are you and Warren together?" Franklin asks. "I don't think I've seen him in a while, but the wings are hard to forget. And, you know, he's kinda a dreamboat."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde leads Franklin through the penthouse, showing him the multi-story apartment that takes up the top few floors. "Yes, have been seeing him since, New Years Eve," Kitty replies. "I went into switch over some infrastructure on the contract I had at Fisk Enterprises, and got stuck in here with the blizzard," she tells him.

They go through the kitchen, and then out into the living area, with the fireplace and big TV, and floor to ceiling windows that show a balcony outside, a hot tub, and the expected amazing view of the city. "We'd run into each other around Christmas at the school, and he'd invited me to see the place and grab lunch. Well, since I was stranded, called and he was just home alone and... ah, yeah," she says, giving a sheepish grin. "It's been three months now and... really happy with him," she says.

Lockheed flaps over excitedly to greet Franklin as they move into the living room.

Franklin Richards has posed:
    "That's great to hear. Starting relationships with lives like ours can be messy business. It's a minor miracle my parents make it work," On some level, Franklin subconsciously represses his mother's complicated relationship with the mutant king of Atlantis. "Hey there, Lockheed," he says, affectionately petting a scaled wing. "I missed you, buddy."

    He turns back to Kitty, still scritching the dragon, "How are the others at Xavier's?"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Lockheed settles on Franklin's shoulder if the young man lets him. "People are mostly pretty good. Jubilee had a bad experience at the demonstration down in DC, but I think she's doing better. Scott... oh god you'll love this," Kitty says, breaking out laughing at the second topic.

"I took Jubilee to Baskin Robbins one day. And as we left, found this little kitten without any sign of a mother or litter. I checked some of the stores, left my number in case they saw a mother cat, but never heard back. So anyway," Kitty tells him. "I took him to the school and let him roam the Rec Room. And after getting some scritches and pets, he goes right over to Scott. And climbs up his leg, and up his sweater. All the way up until he's just clinging there looking at Scott. Scott picks him up and holds him there in front of his face and then breaks out in a little smile. He kept him. Scruffles is his name," Kitty says with a grin.

Franklin Richards has posed:
    "Awwww," Franklin smiles, tilting his head. "He must've been a sweet little guy if he warmed his way into Scott's heart that quickly." He pets the animal perched on him, soft reminders that he still thinks Lockheed's cuter. "The only pets at my place are whatever creatures Dad has up in his lab or Valeria's DoomBots."

    "That demonstration..." He settles on one of the chairs in the living area and gives Kitty a more sober look. "Uh, was it about mutants?"

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty sighs and nods her head at the question. "It was that businessman who was supporting Senator Kelly's bill. But then Mystique assassinated him. And the anti-mutant protestors, and the mutants who had come to counter-protest, came to blows. It wouldn't surprise me if Mystique had a hand in that too, it's exactly the kind of thing she'd want to happen at least," Kitty tells Franklin.

"So," she continues, "One of the anti-mutant crowd pulled a gun and was going to shoot some of the other students who were there. And Jubilee hit him with more than she realized her power could do. He lived, though he was in bad shape," Kitty says, her expression as if everything about the situation is sad.

Franklin Richards has posed:
    "At least she made it out okay," Franklin offers. It's hard for him to produce much sympathy for someone trying to fire into a crowd of kids. "I feel like I don't do enough for...our people," As a byproduct of growing up with humans, Franklin has only a conceptual knowledge of his mutant nature. 'Our people' feels false in his mouth, even if he knows it's factually true.

    "It sucks. Sometimes out there in space, it feels like we, or I guess the Fantastic Four, don't really solve real-world problems." Even if they are saving the universe in some obscure way every other week.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty draws a little breath and lets it out in a sigh. "It's definitely been a long fight. And I don't know how much better off we are now than we were a half dozen years ago," she says, shaking her head. "But we have to keep trying, right? And the more quality openly mutant people there are out there, the better. Like Warren," she says.

The young woman's foot digs at the ground. "And I say that, but then I'm not out there in the open either. Not that people would know who I am. Not unless the X-men made ourselves known. Something I've considered if it would be worth it sometimes," she says, but shrugs as if she's not really sure on that despite how much she's thought about it.

Franklin Richards has posed:
    "I know my parents would respect my choice if I chose to come out with that...but I know it'd make people question them. Everyone loves the Fantastic Four. I don't want that to go away for them. Or maybe I'm just scared," He says, with a modest chuckle, brushing it off as if it wasn't something he's pondered on. "It might help things, though. Send a message that 'hey, one of yours is mutant'. We're all around you."

    "Now about the X-men...I don't really know much about the operations. It'd force you to face the public more openly."