8078/Tracking down the Fireworks

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Tracking down the Fireworks
Date of Scene: 01 October 2021
Location: Some Coffeeshop in Westchester
Synopsis: Phoebe and Jubilee meet in a late-night coffee shop to suss out some facts, and a second chance for Jubilee to get some help with her dietary concerns - hemoglobin!. Phoebe gets a pair of boots, and an invite to Prom.
Cast of Characters: Phoebe Beacon, Jubilation Lee




Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    It all starts with a text from MemorableMyosotis, a direct message <This is Phoebe with the Boots. You are surprisingly easy to track down, Jubilation. Can we meet? I have some questions.>

    And Phoebe, early in the morning, is sitting in some weird school town, at an all-night cafe. She has a cup of tea in front of her, and is writing down notes in a notebook, marked with a tiara sticker on the front. She's wearing a black sweatshirt over the T-shirt and jeans she had been wearing earlier, her hair still in a pair of pom-pom puffs, and she stretches the fingers of her left hand, setting down her pen for a moment.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    It's true. There aren't a lot of Jubilation Lee's out there. She may, actually, be the only one. She's certainly the only one whose name is on a recent death certificate. <Hello, Phoebe with the Boots. There's a place in the Salem Center that's open all night.>

    The bell hanging above the door to the cafe jingles, announcing the arrival of Jubilee. She's changed out of that Hot Topic outfit and into something a bit more her speed: a bright yellow tank top that hugs her form, a pair of black spandex shorts that are frankly way too short for polite society, and a pair of white sneakers. Her goth makeup has been removed and redone in brighter colors -- pink lip gloss, a subtle pomegranate eye shadow, and black mascara. Her hair has been pulled back into a tight ponytail. It seems that the look she was going for earlier in the evening was for the benefit of the vampires she was hoping to meet up with.

    Anyone who might be trying to watch Jubilee move through the cafe might find her difficult to track, an eerie side-effect of her new vampire nature. Every moment is that of a predator, even a simple walk through the rows of an all-night cafe. Suddenly, she's lowering herself into the seat across from Phoebe. "I don't want to get into a whole thing about it, but I'm guessing I can't do my hair like that," Jubilee remarks, eyes rising to look at the pom-pom puffs. She looks legitimately forlorn about that. Jubes sets an empty cup on the table in front of her, one she swiped from a table on her way in to make it look like she's drinking something.

    In her other hand, Jubilation holds those Doc Martens by their laces. She drops them onto the table with a clunk and pushes them across the table to Phoebe's side. They're nearly new, apparently only worn earlier in the evening.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Not without a lot of hairspray, crimping, and probably a level three perm in tight kinks." Phoebe gives a smile as she looks to Jubilee. Jubilee looks much more comfortable in clothes that are more 'Her', and she gives a smile to the other girl. "On the other hand, for my hair to do that?" she motions "Chemical relaxers, at least two conditioners and a flat iron. It's easier to get a lace-front." she explains, and leans back a moment, reaching into her backpack, and she pulls out three thick academic books on folklore, one leather-bound book, and she folds the notebook front with the tiara on it beneath itself, and takes a deep breath -- before the Doc Martens are held up.

    "Oh... oh no I mean, those are two hundred dollar boots these days." Phoebe protests quietly... but she does check the size on the tongues. Just in case.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Hairspray. Crimping. Perm. No thanks. Jubilee's face sours and shakes her head rapidly, as if any ambiguity might result in someone taking a blowtorch to her hair. Her eyes lower to inspect the books, naturally drawn to the tiara sticker. She nearly reaches out for it -- a sucker for juvenile stickers and stationary herself -- but keeps her hands to herself. She's not sure if this Phoebe Beacon is friend or foe.

    "Oh, who cares?" Jubilation replies. "They won't take them back like that and you liked them so much." She shrugs her shoulders and gives them another nudge across the table, as if to insist.

    "So... "

    Realizing something, Jubilation's mouth grows into a huge grin. She brings her hand up to cover it so her fangs aren't so obvious. "I gotta admit... A Christian Slater fantasy is probably not too unusual, but I never imagined I'd be Brad Pitt in mine."

    Is this really the same girl from before?

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe hands over the notebook with the tiara sticker on it. In it? The first page is full of notes about Jubilee. Her name, death certificate information, a couple former addresses. Approximate height and weight. Status as 'vampire (cursed)'.

    "I keep a lot of notebooks." she states, taking the boots and quietly putting them next to her on the seat as she sips her tea, her dark eyes studying Jubilee a moment before she gives a small smile. "Eh, mine was way more Orlando Bloom and Sean Astin, instead I've got -- a whole lot of other items going on and caught wondering if David Bowie was living more than two lives." she counters with a smile. "So, better introduction -- I'm Phoebe. I'm John's student. And Im doing some research to help him out, so that we can help you."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation Lee is not a difficult person to get information on and has just two previous addresses: a Beverly Hills group home and a posh Beverly Hills estate before that. There's a gap of a couple years before she moved into her current address: Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, a reclusive private school in Westchester. Jubilation Lee is also the name of a young olympic gymnast whose career was cut short by the tragic murder of her parents. Same girl.

    "His student... " Jubilation repeats. "...Student of what?" She looks away for a moment before her gaze returns to that notebook. "Help me how?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "John's a problem solver for a certain genre of problems. He and I met when I came to him in need of help when some necromantic constructs started chasing me." she explains. Jubilee would find the first two pages, handwritten are plain information. A couple of skills, the notation of possible remaining trauma from the murder. Phoebe is thorough when it comes to her background information searches, though Xavier's is left blank. She rubs the warmth of her mug a moment as she recalls a few memories, and then draws her eyes back up to Jubilee.

    "And I'm sorry for calling you a dumb kid; he really is a nice guy underneath it all. He gets out of sorts when it comes to kids getting hurt." she explains to cover the very dramatic reaction.

    And she sips her tea. "... that and you kind of insulted his life's work."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Did I? It's the question that her face is asking. She blinks, trying to find the memory that might be described that way. "...I didn't mean to..." is what comes. Jubilation looks away, as though she's truly ashamed of that. Her mouth opens, as if to explain further, but she false starts and hesitates.

    "He was saying how I'm going to hurt or kill someone... so I said he doesn't know what he's talking about," she explains quietly, still looking down at the table. The words she used might have insulted the man's life's work, but that's not what she meant when she said them. He doesn't know what he's talking about when he's talking about Jubilation Lee.

    "And why does he care what some kid thinks, anyway?" Jubes asks, perhaps accuses. She grimaces and shakes her head. "Nothing, nothing." Sigh. There's a turmoil bubbling up inside this girl and John Constantine's feelings were caught in the cross-fire. Jubilee hesitates again, another false start, before she finds the words.

    "I've been having these... mood swings, I guess," she explains. 'Since becoming a vampire' is not said, but it's implied. "I mean, sometimes I feel like myself, but... sometimes..." Jubilation's hands come together over the table and mimic strangling an invisible neck. "...Sometimes I'm just so... Hateful."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "You didn't mean to. There was probably a lot of emotion running hot." Phoebe explains, taking blame away from both Jubes and John on that one. She gives a gentle smile, almost willing a sense of calm. It'd be easier if she had her aura, but that'd be a tad bit dangerous. "He's speaking from experience, I would think. Inexperience with new abilities can breed disaster, it's why I'm learning." she explains, without explaining much about her, and she patiently listens to Jubilee, watching her. For someone who appears to be around the same age, she's rather calm and clinical.

    "Have you considered that because your nutritional needs may have drastically altered, they might be partially responsible?" Phoebe asks with an almost amused expression, "Like when you have sugar drops after binging on Halloween?"

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Yeah, I know..." is all Jubilee says about new abilities bringing disaster. She knows a thing or two about that, both in life and in death.

    Something Phoebe says draws out a look of disgust. Halloween candy. Jubilee shakes her head, using the full range of motion in her neck to protest that. All of the foods that she loved most in life are now the ones that repulse her the most.

    "Like, you think I'm hangry?" Jubilee translates. She shrugs her shoulders. "I... I mean, maybe, but I...I uh, eat," she says cryptically, looking away. Drink might be the better word. She doesn't elaborate just yet, letting Phoebe form her own conclusions on what, exactly, she's been eating and where she's been getting it.

    "But, you're right... the hunger is a big thing," Jubilation agrees. "But, I don't know... I get /that/ feeling. I can anticipate it happening, so... you know, I... I leave and take care of it." Jubilation looks down at the notebook again, and frowns, trying to find the best way to describe this. "...I feel like, if I'm not careful I mean, I've got all these new feelings and emotions about things and... they're really intense, you know? I... I can't tell you how badly I wanted to kill him." John, she means.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe really wants to say 'trust me, we all get that feeling about John', except hers has been less 'kill' and more 'shake information out of him'.

    "So you don't eat anything that you have before, and you're experiencing deep deepings of hatred. Heightened emotions across the board, or just certain ones?" Phoebe asks curiously, and she reaches to pull her notebook back, picking up her pen and clicking. She's writing in pink ink now. The rest of it was blue with certain things in teal. Like mental history.

    "And there's other factors, too. Guilt. Subconcious. Higher brain versus lower brain."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Food makes me vomit," Jubilee clarifies. "Like, a lot. A lot a lot. It's like something out of the Saw movies. I... Well, you know what I need. I'm not going to say it." She shrugs and strums her fingers on the table and glances down at the notebook again, watching Phoebe turn what she's saying into text. Pink is a good choice.

    "Heightened across the board," Jubilation replies without delay. "Every feeling is bigger... Brighter. Darker. Does that make sense?"

    If Jubes payed more attention in class, she'd be able to tell Phoebe that she's right on the money about that higher brain versus lower brain thought. Since her transformation, Jubilation has started to develop many of the lower brain behaviors shared by the other predator species on the planet.

    Unprompted, Jubilee leans back and lets out a grunt of frustration. "And everything is, like, a fight or a power thing. Like, everything is about power. I told Nori that she belongs to me. What kind of shit is that?" She rolls her eyes at the thought and then turns to face Phoebe again. "But, here's the weird thing: I'm sitting here /saying/ that it's weird that I said she belongs to me, but... it's not weird. It makes so much sense to me right now and I can't explain why."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "So your body can't process normal food--" Phoebe begins to make notes. She opens up one of the books to where there was a pink sticky note, and she gives a soft hum a moment, and then raises her eyebrows.

    "So Nori -- is that the jealous girlfriend?" she inquires with a gentle grin, but she writes everything down in shorthand.

    "And that deos make sense. From my research, Vampires have heightened senses, so it makes sense that everything you experience would be stronger. Kinda like taking off earmuffs or a pair of sunglasses makes the world around you more vibrant, but can be more distracting."

    "And no, you don't need to tell me what you need. I'm pretty sure the dentals explained it quite clearly." she states in a veiled way, and she then takes a breath, and she holds out her hands, palm up.

    "I'm going to take this information back to John, but I wanted you to know that if you want help, he will help you. He's probably going to help even if you don't want it," she remarks with a rueful voice.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Can't process it at all..." she laments. "Not that it matters. That stuff is /gross/." She says it like it's a minor thing that her entire taste profile has changed completely. Jubilation pulls a pair of Ray Ban sunglasses that have been tucked into the top of her tanktop. She slips them over her eyes and nods, doing so with apparently no explanation.

    "Nori is..." Jubilation's voice trails off, a smile forming. "Yeah. And I was joking about that. But, yeah, she'd probably wonder about you if she saw us. She's just..." Jubilation can't help but smile thinking about that. "...She's protective." Whatever jealousy Jubilee had alluded to earlier does not seem to be a pain point for her. "We both are."

    The mention of John draws Jubilee out of that reverie and back into the here and now. "What do you mean, he'll help me?" Jubilation asks, raising both eyebrows above the top of her dark sunglasses. "He said himself he's never seen this before. What kind of help do I even need?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "That I can understand. The girl I was sweet on's protective too, but..." Phoebe gives a slight smile, and she shrugs her shoulders "... life I live makes dating complicated, though. Missing out on Prom is going to suuuuuuu---per be bad." she states, deciding not to use 'suck' around the vampiric Jubilee. She gives a small smile.

    "Like I said, John's a problem solver. If this was a curse, maybe it can be lifted." Maybe she can even help. "If nothing else, he can offer advice." she states, and she reache sinto her bag, and she brings out a business card. It has her first name, the @ with the forget-me-not tag, and a phone number.

    "I'm good for texts, too."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation squints from behind those sunglasses. "It doesn't have to be complicated. I mean, I'm a...well, you know. And Noriko's..." She's about to say speedster, but instead lets the matter go. "...She has her own stuff." Jubilee reaches out and picks up her empty cup and awkwardly moves it around in the air, as though the act of drinking from a cup is now alien to her. It's all just a show for anyone who might be paying attention. She totally drinks! Honest!

    "Why do you have to miss your prom?" Jubilation wonders. In a conversation about vampirism and her very existence, Jubes is much more interested about Phoebe's prom. No way in HELL will Jubes be missing any of /her/ school dances!

    As the conversation shifts back to her alleged curse, Jubilation lets go of her cup and folds her arms across her chest. "Yeah, so, maybe this is how I'm supposed to be," Jubilee offers stubbornly. She shares a physical body with another version of herself that's very interested in preserving its own existence. Her face softens, though. "...Advice might be good, though," she admits quietly.

    Jubilation reaches out to take the card and stares at it for a couple of moments. "I swear... I go eighteen years without getting a single business card and now, here I am, getting two on the same night," she mutters while shaking her head. She does with it what she did with John's: snaps a picture of it with her phone.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "I got expelled for breaking someone's sixteenth birthday nose and two shoulders, and then went out a third-story window, interrupted the Gotham news cycle and got kidnapped by a cult to Montana. It was a long December." Phoebe states with a wry smile.

    "So, yeah, end of my junior year, no senior year, so I'm out in a different life, a life that feels that it's worth living." she gives a shrug, and then gives a laugh.

    "Well, it's not a business card. I used to run the Gotham Hope blog. So once I kinda lost focus, I have to use up all these cards somehow." she gently replies, and she leans back.

    "Advice is good, and John's is good, so if he gives you advice, I'd heed it." she puts the boots in her bag, and slips her books back in, closing the notebook. She holds it up, and shows the Tiara.

    "If there's anything you need, even just support with how much suddenly dropping into the supernatural can be unweildy, let me know. I'll do my best to help."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    One side of Jubilee's mouth curls into a smile. "Did they deserve it, at least?" she wonders, looking amused at that story. She's wanted to break some noses, after all, and understands that some people just need to get punched. "Why don't you just... I don't know, go anyway? It's not like they can expel you again." Jubes nods her head up and down, bobbing excitedly at the thought of catching the adults in an unwindable situation of their own creation.

    The point about the Gotham Hope Blog and its significance is lost on the young vampire. She's so wrapped up in her own little world that a blog about some city in New Jersey just isn't appearing on her radar. She just nods her head politely.

    Phoebe's point about 'if there's anything you need' sounds a lot like a way to get the conversation to a close and she recognizes that. Jubilation nods and slides out from her seat. "Okay, thanks..." she says softly. Jubilation's eyes shift a little as though she might be picking her next words carefully. Instead, she says something stupid.

    "And, we're getting you to a prom, Phoebe With The Boots!" Jubilation declares. "You're going!" And just like that, it's settled. The vampire adjusts her sunglasses, flashes the other girl a quick peace sign with her fingers, and begins to glide-walk out into the night! Perhaps their paths will cross again...

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "My mom got hurt in a fire and I was basically homeless, so I was a bit emotionally unstable at the time." Phoebe explains she gives a grin to Jubilation Lee. "I don't think the Gotham Public School system would let me back in, but I manage with some private lessons and a whole lot of downtime to study." she tates, and she leaves a tenner for her tea on the table, and grabs her things, watching as Jubilee glides out into the night.

    "... this is going to be one of those things that gets me kidnapped and in uncomfortable shoes, isn't it?" she asks herself quietly, and then she shakes her head, shoulders her pack, and walks out.

    It's going to be a long-ass ride back to New York City and explaining to Chas why she broke curfew to investigate a teenage vampire.