862/Potato Knishes

Potato Knishes
Date of Scene:	30 March 2020
Location:	Avengers Mansion
Synopsis:	Kitty drops by Avengers Mansion with some deli treats.
Cast of Characters:	Kitty Pryde, Bruce Banner

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Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde walks up to the gate to Avenger's Mansion. She pushes the button on the intercom, waiting for a response which comes forthwith. JARVIS's voice, stating, "Hello Miss Pryde. How may we help you today?"

Kitty grins slightly at and glances towards a camera that is no doubt providing JARVIS with fodder for facial recognition. "Hello JARVIS. I was hoping to see Doctor Banner if he's free. Just a social visit," she says. She holds up a to go container from a nearby deli. "I brought potato knishes," she says in explanation.

Bruce Banner has posed:
    The easily recognizable electronic voice of JARVIS responds to her after a few brief moments.

    "Very good, Miss Pryde. Doctor Banner will see you. He is in his own personal laboratory and has given me permission to send you to him directly. I will illuminate the path for you."

    As he says this, the door swishes open. And illuminate the path he does. The interior was already well lit, but a secondary source of lighting (coincidentally green in color) comes on to indicate the path she needs to take to get to Bruce's private arrangements.

    Once there, the door to his lab will open in a similar way, where she would find Bruce in his full lab coat, standing near a large computer terminal.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty follows along the lit path. She's far from a regular here, but neither is it her first time into the mansion. She makes it to the laboratory, knocking on the door frame as she steps into the doorway.

"Don't know if you're hungry, but I was in the area and thought I'd drop by. Brought some really good knishes. And a couple of black and white cookies for desert," she says, holding up the to-go order from the deli.

She glances about the lab. "Anything universe-threatening?" she asks of his work he's got going.

Bruce Banner has posed:
    Bruce gives an awkward yet authentic grin. "Uhhh.... great! I love knishes! Come on in."

    He turns then, holding up his hand in a welcoming gesture. The door shuts behind her. "JARVIS, secure the room please. I don't want any more visitors for the time being."

    "Of course Dr. Banner. Activating security." The door to his room seems to make an audible latching sound as a confirmation to this.

    "Universe threatening? No, nothing more than the usual." He turns back to his terminal, making a brief gesture to it. "I was just, uh... checking out some more of my blood samples, trying to see if this... condition of mine.... gets better or worse with time."

    As he says this, he turns to the side a bit so the terminal can be seen. There are several different panels there, all of them with zoomed in images of different blood cells.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty comes over, setting down the containers and opening them up. In addition to the knishes there are a number of different sauces for dipping them in. Though of course she made sure to get plenty of mustard, most people's favorite.

Kitty glances at the terminal, giving it more than a cursory look. "Hmm, interesting," she says. "I'm not nearly the biologist that Hank is," she says, mentioning Beast, "But even I can see some of the differences there."

She draws over a chair, glancing at the terminal again. "Need any help with the programming side of things? Maybe anything you have to do manually that I could help automating?" she asks.

Bruce Banner has posed:
    "No, not really... but the thought is appreciated." He takes a half step back, smiling in his usual awkward way before making a broad gesture towards the room. "I have this whole lab and I have JARVIS. There's not a whole lot I have to do manually anymore." He moves over towards where she sat the knishes and helps himself.

    "Coulda used someone like you 5 years ago, though. That's for sure." He puts a bit of mustard on the knish and moves over to a nearby table. He reaches up with his free hand to remove his glasses, sitting them off to the side before turning to lean back against the table while looking in her direction and eating away at that knish.
    "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" An awkward pause. "Uh... not that I am not happy to see you or anything. Usually when people come see me its not typically a social call..."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty picks up one of the knishes and dips it in some spicy mustard. She takes a bite and sighs as she chews it. Once she's able, she asks, "Really? Why not? You're pretty sociable."

Kitty pulls a pair of flavored selzers out of the bag, offering one over to Bruce. "Unless it's the whole, Hulk thing? I guess maybe that would put some people off. But, hey, I'm used to being around Logan. So... not saying it is exactly the same. But Hulk probably smells better." She gives Bruce a little grin with a twinkle in her eyes for the dig on Logan.

Not that she'd talk behind his back. She'll totally tell him about that one later.

Bruce Banner has posed:
    "Well, I certainly don't feel all that sociable. Years of isolated because you're afraid you might throw a tantrum and hurt someone who doesn't deserve it... well, that will do that to you."

    He smiles weakly and takes the selzer. He opens it up to take a drink as he finishes that knish.

    "Could be the Hulk thing, yeah. I feel like everyones trying to walk on eggshells around me... but I get it." He looks listlessly off towards a corner of the room.

    "Generally when I get a visit its because someone needs something smashed. It's not all that often -Bruce- gets a visitor." He shakes his head a bit, snapping out of his little monologue.

    "Listen to me whine. Sorry."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty Pryde gives a little wave of her hand. "Everyone needs whining time. It should be in the Bill of Rights," she says with a little grin. Kitty shrugs. "So just how much does it take to set him off, if you don't mind my asking. Does it have to be pretty intense emotion? Believe me, I know how it is for people to have problems fitting in and feeling normal. That is... well, I have it lucky amongst mutants. But someone like Hank? Seen a lot of other students go through things. And, you shouldn't have to be feeling that all the time. Just, I do want to make sure I don't trigger you, so just let me know where the line starts to come into focus," she suggests.

Kitty takes another bite. "Oh God I was so hungry," she says with a sigh, then chases the food with a sip of blackberry selzer.

Bruce Banner has posed:
    "Anger is the biggest catalyst. That much is... painfully obvious at this point. But it seems to be that any sort of heightened stress can trigger it..." He takes another drink of his selzer before sitting it down and sliding it down the table.

    "I can force a transformation... so I have been... useful to a degree. At least in dealing with physical threats. Problem is that once I transform, there is no more control. At best I am able to keep Hulk's anger directed at something... constructive? But even then, its like trying to run a freight train through a glass building without cracking the wall. It's... near impossible..."

    "What the big green guy wants? He usually gets."

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Kitty continues eating while she listens. "Hmmm," she says thoughtfully. "How much has Hulk been around the other Avengers? I was just curious if he kind of is a blank slate each time he comes out, or if he remembers people from before. Like, can people sort of... develop a rapport with him? Even if it's just a less angry than normal sort of thing," she suggests.

She takes another bite, chewing it and looking thoughtful. "If you wanted to experiment... could maybe go way off somewhere there's nothing to hurt and I could give it a try. I mean... I don't know how much you read up on me or anything. But I can phase. So, worse case he'd just get more angry that he couldn't touch me. But wouldn't be able to actually hurt me."

Bruce Banner has posed:
    Bruce gives another weak, awkward grin. "I, uh. Well. No, its not a clean slate every time. Hulk knows things, remembers people. He is able to build a rapport. He knows that the Avengers are his friends and doesn't go out of his way to wreck their day. At least, not usually..." He rolls his shoulders a bit, a hand coming up to squeeze gently at the back of his neck.

    "And... I experience it all too. Maybe not fully but... it's like seeing through someone else's eyes. I know what the Hulk does, what he is doing at the time.... but only to a degree.

    He looks back up to her then, giving her a knowing look.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
The eighteen year old nods her head a bit as she listens to Bruce's explanations. "Hmm, well, that's good that he knows not to target the rest of the Avengers then," she says with a smile. Except for Thor of because. Because, that guy!?

Kitty takes another bite, getting a bit of mustard on the corner of her mouth which she wipes with a finger then discretely sucks the condiment off of before continuing to eat. "Well, I'm happy to make social calls," she tells him. "Long as you don't mind the company. Or, interruption. They are actually synonyms but we are often too polite to point that out," she says, giving him a soft, warm grin.