Owner Pose
Stella Roundtree      With errands to run, Stella is a woman on a mission. Or a mutant on a mission, if one is totally honest. She has bagels on the brain, which is probably why she nearly gets hit by a car. She's just stepping off a step and into a crosswalk, the driver texting, and then Stella's head turns towards the car and it stops. The driver doesn't even whiplash forward, it simply ceases. The brunette pats the hood of the car, "Careful now..." and bagel quest resumes.
Hal Jordan There really is no telling just how long it might be before Hal is pulled away into some critical matter. And once that happens there is no telling how long it will be before he can get back to the city. Or more specifically, until he can get back to see a certai young woman. All of which means that he is hanging about a little more often then would normally be the case.

Given just how much time they've been spending together as of late, he is genuinely neither seeking her out nor stalking her. Instead he happens to be flying over head, swooping about the city in his costumed identity.

Indeed, it is the fact that Stella is nearly rundown that catches his attention at first. He isn't even aware that it is her, simply spotting the incident from up the street, starting to streak towards the accident to be like a green blur. When the car suddenly stops. Not that it slammed on it's breaks, or there is any sign that the driver realized what was about to happen and tried to prevent it. No, it just stops. It's only then that he realizes that it was Stella who very nearly was hit.
Stella Roundtree      Just another day in the city for most! Another day, another hero, and almost another car accident. Though some would argue there's no such thing as almost, a car is either in an accident or it isn't. So at least the man flying up above would be a welcome distraction for how a car- and a zippy one at that- came to a full stop without the owner's consent. Stella does look up for a moment, laughing and shaking her head.

     "They're ev-er-y-where," she says to herself, making it to the other side of the street unscathed. She certainly can't recognize him from down there as she makes her way to her favorite bagel place. On the way there, a man tries to grab her ass but then jumps back after contact as if he's been shocked. He shakes his hands out, and there's a faint smoke trail coming from his fingers.

     And as the bagel shop door opens, a mom holding a big bag of bagels trips over her kid it looks like the precious goods are about to go flying!

     But they don't. Instead, the bag lands neatly in Stella's hands and all the precious rings, airborne as they are, gracefully arc into the bag one by one like an edible carbohydrate ballet. She hands the bag back over to the harried mom, who scolds the kids as they walk off, slipping in to get her own breakfast.

     Sure, all these things can just /happen.../ but seeing them all at once might be painting a picture.
Hal Jordan It's a big city. So it is always unusual to run into someone you know. And this isn't even his main stomping grounds. So there is definitely some surprise that the woman he intended to rescue is one that he already knows. And while she might not need any help it is hard to simply zip away without a word or explanation for the strange feats that he has witnessed. Not that it is necessarily any of his business of course.

It's not like he's told Stella everything about himself afterall.

Yes, it would probably be best if he just flew on his way and pretended that none of this ever happened. But hey, Hal is not perfect and he does not always make the absolute best decisions. So he lingers. He keeps pace with her up above, trailing after her. So he's there when the man gets that well deserved shock, he's there when the bag of bagels goes flying but somehow all end up caught, safe and sound in Stella's hands.

There's coincidence and then there are feats that strain all credibility. These are definitely adding up to the later.
Stella Roundtree      Really, unless someone had a bird's eye view, it would have been hard to see all that with the morning foot traffic. And Stella emerges soonafter from the bagel shop with a little bag and a coffee, humming along to herself as she decides to head to a park to eat.

     She takes the most likely path, holding her too-hot coffee (nothing to be done about that, even with her abilities) as she makes her way to the nearest green space. Perfectly safe during the day.

     Though she does pull out her phone an awful lot, fussing with it, turning with her back to him. Whatever she's engrossed in, she's into it. And finally she moves to a bench under a tree, obscured from aerial view, in order to enjoy her food.
Hal Jordan One of the advantages of having arguable the most powerful weapon/tool in the galaxy at his disposal is that there is very little that he cannot manage through one sort of hard-light construct or another. But he does have limits. He maaaaaay be kind of stalking her at the moment, but intellectually he can at least justify it a little. He is being discrete and not terribly invasive. That would definitely change if he sent little green constructs to listen to what is going on, or get a better view.

So he hangs about over head for a moment before finally soaring off, if only a short distance. Landing amidst a copse of trees there is a shimmer and then the Green Lantern uniform is gone and there stands regular old Hal Jordan.

Satisfied, the dark haired man steps out from amongst those trees and starts walking down the path in her direction.
Stella Roundtree      The bag of bagel is there where she should be, but she is not. Odd. Where the heck did she go? Is she invisible? Is that one of her things?

     It takes until he's right under her for her to say, "Hal?" And the voice is up. Up in the tree, as a matter of fact. "Fancy seeing you here. I was just about to enjoy my breakfast," she says from her perch in the tree, still holding that very hot coffee. She swaps it from hand to hand. She lowers the cup carefully down first, leaning down low dropping it onto the bench next to the bagels, where it sticks and stays. And then she's down as well. "Just, uh... getting a view of the park!"
Hal Jordan He's not really one to comment on strange behavior. Afterall, he was flying around glowing all the green and spying on her only a few moments earlier. Hanging out in a tree isn't really all that strange compared to that. But it is definitely a little odd however. And he has certainly had the chance to oversee quite a few oddities from her already today.

"Well, well, well. Fancy meeting you here," Hal offers up cheerfully though he does arch a brow her way as she contorts herself to set that coffee down. "So I see. It must be a pretty compelling view for you to go to all that effort," he teases lightly.
Stella Roundtree      "Well, to be honest, I thought I was being followed, so I kinda wanted to be ready to get the jump on the guy," she says. "I'm not Zooey Deschenelling it up here just being quirky or singing to birds. I have a guitar, not a ukelele, thank you very much. You hungry? I got an extra bagel for later, but weird that we ran into each other," she offers, settling in on the bench.

     She would have much rather him found her like this, perfectly normal.
Hal Jordan It would be a little quirky, wouldn't it? Just hanging out in a tree. But given that he is more or less responsible for that he can only smile and nod his understanding. "Pretty clever, all things considered," he agrees. "And yes, it is quite the coincidence, though a pretty good one if you ask me," he adds lightly. "As for the bagel, I'm hardly one to turn down an offering of food," he says, moving to join her at the park bench.
Stella Roundtree      "Yeah, clever enough to scald him with coffee. Maybe. Or just threaten to if he didn't tell me what was goin' on. But you're here now, so... I think I'm safe for the moment," she says, looking at her phone, which dies as soon as she turns it on. "UGH. I need to charge this..." she grumbles, shoving it back into her pocket.

     She offers up one of two plain bagels and opens up the tiny tub of cream cheese that came with, and an itty bitty knife. "But it's nice to see you while you're still around. I'd consider this a full date, but I gotta make you work for it, or you won't respect me as a woman," she says with a wink. "So this is just a meeting. How long until you head back?"
Hal Jordan As a general rule coffee -- hot or not -- is not very effective against his personal force field. Still, it definitely would have been awkward to have it hurled at him. Probably for the best that he avoided that particular fate. Passing up the direct confrontation was definitely the best route to go. Especially since he is not entirely convinced that he really has any right to answers. At least not yet at any rate.

"Always a pain," he agrees with a nod for the phone before taking one of those offered bagels, smearing a tab of cream cheese on before taking a bite. His stomach actually rumbles for just a moment, a reminder that he rather forgot to do anything about breakfast before setting out this morning. "Mmmm, a little hard to say. I'm on call at the moment so it could really come at any time," he admits. Which is pretty much true, even if it applies to his other job, rather than the whole test pilot thing.
Stella Roundtree      "That's life, bein' on call. Speaking of, I actually busted a mutant kid at work today. He was teleporting into an office to watch for muggers in an alley below," Stella says as she prepares her own bagel. "It was kinda sweet, though he did leave a sandwich behind after I told him he needed to find a building that I wasn't working on," she says with a little laugh.

     "Definitely kinda neat, though, right? To have powers like that? I mean... I know there are people around here who really hate mutants, that's for sure. Uh... so what do you think about them?" she asks, swinging her legs a little bit as she over smears the cream cheese on her bagel. She seems very fixated on that.
Hal Jordan Now that is an interesting shift in topic isn't it? And considering what he has seen of her this morning it does raise some interesting questions. Is it possible that she is a mutant? That she has some abilities that would explain the strangeness that he has seen thus far today from her? It would explain quite a bit actually, both in what she has seen and the possibility that she might be checking out his own views on the subject.

Fortunately his own views are not all that surprising, given what he does, what he's seen. "Pretty interesting yeah. I'm glad that things went well all in all with your little encounter," he says with a brief smile, taking a bite of his own bagel. "As to mutants, I imagine that they're pretty much the same as the rest of us where it counts. MOst are good, decent people with a few bad eggs out there painting the lot of them with some unfair characterization," he says with a small shrug of his shoulders. "I generally believe that powers and abilities beyond the normal don't really change a person's fundamental nature most of the time. It only enhances it. What's good becomes great. What's bad becomes worse."
Stella Roundtree      Such a sudden change, too. Might explain a bit of her weirdness, that occasional attempt to hide things. And so she listens to his explanation as she absolutely houses her bagel, unaware of how fast it's going down.

     "Sure, it's one thing to say that or to be friends with one but... a relationship beyond that might be hard, right? For a lot of normal regular old people?" she asks again, still probing. "I'm guessing you can figure out why..."
Hal Jordan "Oh, I can understand why," Hal agrees with a nod, his own bagel being consumed a little more of a gradual rate, but still being tucked away. He really was quite hungry. "But there's a host of things that add difficulties and stress to a relationship. That is at least mostly external. That is other people trying to apply pressure to you because they don't like soemthing about someone else. And anyone who is going to just take an inherent disliking to someone because of their basic nature isn't really someone that I care to listen to," he admits with a slow shrug of his shoulders. "It would be as ridiculous as someone taking a disliking to me because I'm really good at flying."
Stella Roundtree      Her hand now empty, Stella wipes her hands on the napkin that came with her bagel. There is almost a wince at first, like she's waiting for the bad news to hit her. Perhaps there's a prickly history there. But his answer seems to calm her, and Stella is able to relax back against the bench.

     "It can be a pretty scary basic nature for mutants, though. But I have not seen you fly, so I can't judge accordingly," she teases. "I don't typically let people know- not even the kid that I shooed off the property I was working at- but I like you and want to keep seeing you, so I wanted to be honest," she says, crumpling the bag in her hands.
Hal Jordan That is a pretty brave thing. It certainly seems like there might be an experience or two in her background making it that much trickier to discuss, but she went ahead and did it anyway. Certainly it would be hard to ask for a better prompt then that, right?

First though he leans over and takes her free hand in his own with a little smile. "Believe it or not, I have a pretty good idea of what you mean. Some things are just difficult to bring up in casual conversation and it's hard to know how some people will react about certain things. Thanks for trusting me," he adds, squeezing her hand.

And then he takes a deep breath. "Of course, you're not the only one who has a bit of a secret. I've been kinda debating on when and how to bring up my own. It's a little bit... unusual too," he admits. Maybe he actually robs banks for a living? Or has a superfluous third nipple. Or maybe he's just an intergalactic space cop. "I know you seem to have found yourself hanging out with a surprising number of costumed hero types. I'm afraid you've stumbled over one more."
Stella Roundtree      "Definitely not something you tell anyone about on a first date, that's for sure," Stella says. "Sometimes people get scared, or angry, or feel like you tricked them. Or that you could hurt them, I guess. Much more possible when you have different abilities than most. But you seem pretty trustworthy at this point, and... well, if you didn't like it, you live on the other coast most of the time. I'd live." She returns the pressure in his hand.

     As she listens, she tilts her head ever-so-slightly, and then there's the slight narrowing of her eyes. ANOTHER ONE? But she remains audibly calm, "Have I seriously? Or are you just messing with me? Hal, I've been told it's perfectly fine to be a regular human being," she says, trying to keep her nerves under control. "Are you also... you know... like me? Or maybe I should just let you talk, sorry," she says, shaking her head and finally letting some of that nervousness escape in a laugh.
Hal Jordan "Different people process things like that in different ways. I imagine you've run through a bunch of different ones over the years," he admits quietly, nodding his head. "I admit my perspective is a little broader than most when it comes to this sort of thing. It definitely helps. Suffice to say that I've encountered a great many different things over the years. It takes a lot to phase me. You might now and then, but not because of that," Hal offers up with a smile.

"I wouldn't joke about something like that, especially not at the moment," he assures her quickly. "And no, I'm not like you. This isn't anything I was born with. It's more... well, I suppose it might be easier to just show you..." he conceeds, stealing a quick look around the park before his gaze flashes back to her. He winks at her then and for just a moment that Green Lantern uniform covers him, green and glowing and with that mask in place. He raises his other hand, that power ring prominent on his finger.

And then just as quick as it appeared, it's gone again, leaving his looking once more like Hal Jordan, test pilot.
Stella Roundtree      "More likely because I take you to abandoned sanitariums for fun and climb trees with intent to ambush," Stella says, smiling back, scooting close. There's the small look of disappointment on her face when he says he isn't like her- perhaps a hope for kinship dashed in that particular metric. But she does give him room to show her whatever it is that he's going to, and she's very surprised at it.

     "It was YOU! You're so bright!" she says, blinking a few times as she sees him in costume, and then back out. "I thought you were following me this morning! I was snapping pictures over my shoulder to check!" she says, bumping her hip hard into his. "But I guess that's a relief, that it was you and not someone actively hunting me for whatever reason," she says, relaxing and resting her head on his shoulder. She looks over his hands, picking up the one with the ring, "So it's all in this?" she asks, curious. "Like magic?"
Hal Jordan There date at the abandonned sanitarium was definitely pretty unique, though it turned out much better in practice then he could have ever imagined in theory. Still a smile flashes across Hal's face at that reminder. "Something like that," he agrees, slipping an arm about her shoulder, leaning back against her a little bit. He's perceptive enough to tell that she would have been relieved if he was indeed a mutant. But at least he's in the right ballpark. That's something.

"It was me. Though for the record I was not stalking you, not at first," he points out wryly. "I spotted you in that intersection and when the car stopped impossibly I got curious. That let me see a few more incidances," he admits.

At the mention of magic, Hal smiles again. "Kind of hte opposite, though from another view point it might as well be magic," he admits. "I was recruited to be part of an interstellar force of protectors. The Green Lantern Corps. The sector of space where we are, where Earth is, that's my charge. It was created by the oldest sentient race in the galaxy and the means they've given us is this ring," he says, it again revealing itself briefly. "It is probably about the most powerful weapon/tool in the galaxy. Depending on the wielder at least."
Stella Roundtree      Stella settles right in. Despite their conversation, it's a pretty placid, normal scene at the moment. Just two people enjoying breakfast in the park.

     "Oh, the car, yeah. I can stop or move things. I've been told it's kinetic energy. I can make it do things, push, pull, amplify, or make it go away. Same with sound and electricity," she says. "I can see it, too," she says, looking around and taking it all in. "But I can't make any of it, unless it's my own voice or my own body movement. And what comes out of that ring of yours seems different. Very bright," she says. "I was having trouble seeing you directly when you were flying."

     She nestles in close, leaning into his warmth. "I guess I should be more careful, but you know... I didn't count on someone flyin' overhead!"

     She takes in the information about the ring, looking at it as he elaborates. "So does it only work with you? Like if another person had it on, would it do anything?" she asks out of curiosity. "I mean... I live with someone who flies around and is insanely strong, among other things," she says. "I'd hate to fight HER. Your powers, er... the ring's? Sound pretty formidable."
Hal Jordan Being able to fly does have a number of advantages, it is true. A bird's eye view of things can most certainly be one of those advantages. Chuckling quietly, Hal nods his agreement as they cuddle up on the park bench, the cool weather making that closeness all the more comfortable in some respects.

"Sounds about right. That's pretty interesting. And pretty powerful. Science was never my very best subject but you pick up a fair bit of that when you travel through space and visit new worlds on a regular basis," Hal admits with a wry smile. "I personally think that flexibility counts for a lot, when it comes to these things. But I might be biased," he admits.

As the discussion turns back to his ring, he nods slowly. "Someone else could use it. For a time. It's pretty hard to use properly, let alone master but it will work for anyone. Until the charge runs out at least. We have lanterns that we use to charge our rings. Roughly once a day. Hence the name, Green Lantern," he says with a smile. "But yes, the ring operates off of what the Guardians -- those are those aliens I mentioned -- what they considered to be the strongest force in the universe. Pure willpower. I can fly, obviously, and the glow is basically a force field protecting me from harm. Even the vacume of space. I travel between the stars in moments, instead of years. And I can form solid light constructs that are as strong as my will. Anything I imagine, I can create. And of course, the ring is an artificial intelligence with access to the database complied by those same ancient aliens," he offers up. "It's a formidable package. If I do say so myself."
Stella Roundtree      "Huh. You can make *anything*? Do they stick around? Or just vanish when you don't need 'em? Seems like I'm holdin' you back keeping you even on this bench for a minute, what with all that can do," Stella laughs. "And when you're on call, that's what you meant, right? Not just for... are you actually really a pilot then? Or is that just a cover?" she asks. "The stars must be really pretty up there when you're flying, I bet..." she says wistfully.

     "As for my stuff... uh, I kinda gave my mom a nervous breakdown when I was a teenager with all my antics and gettin' into fights, so I just kept them to myself for a long time, because it made her upset. Being here though, meeting other people who are helpin' me to learn and train, it's like it's opening up. I'm gettin' suggestions I never even thought of, and they work," she says, still in awe of it all. "I know I'm way behind other people like me. But I think I can catch up."
Hal Jordan He does smile briefly at that. "It might look like a magic ring, but there are certain laws of nature that can't be broken. Energy is finite. I can make anything I can imagine, and they will stick around up to the point that the ring runs out of power. The more constructs that I have going at once, the faster the power drain. So building a big, green house might sound like a great idea. And it is. Right up until the ring runs out of power before I can recharge it. Then *poof* the house is gone and anything inside of it is just laying open and exposed on the ground," he says wryly.

Nothing's perfect it would seem.

"But yes, I am a pilot, I was in the military and I am a test pilot now. Though admittedly it is the costumed thing that gets me called away, not the test pilot thing," he admits, the smile swiftly returning. "I love to fly. And if you want to see the stars from space, well... that can be arranged."

It's possible that he now has his answer to their third date.

Listening to her, that hand idly strokes at her shoulder, turning a little on the bench to face her as she outlines some of those early challenges... and some of what she would like to do with her gifts now. "Good for you. I think it's always a good thing, learning to use your gifts and abilities to your fullest potential. Even when they come with some complications." Like his gift for flight. It definitely complicates his relationship with his family.
Stella Roundtree      Stella's mind is racing with possibilities! "So you must be pretty imaginative, then? Coming up with whatever you need while... space... monitoring?" she asks, trying to put it together. Maybe she's a visual learner. "And hey, we all have responsibilities," she says. "And maybe when those aren't too pressing, I'd love to see the stars from space. How many people get to do that?" she asks, all excited against him. There's some wiggling.

     "Well! Okay, now that I know about the complications... fine by me, really," she says. "I don't know that I could date a person who's plain ol' normal for too long. Always felt like a weird power imbalance- which this sorta is, I think your ring could take me out pretty quick- but I more worried about it the other way," she says. "But maybe I can impress you with what I can do at some point."
Hal Jordan "I like to think I'm not bad. I would say that there are Lanterns out there that are more imaginative. But my will is second to nonem" Hal boasts. Just a little. But is it really bragging if it also happens to be true? It's a fair question. "Well then, it sounds like I have our third date all sewn up now. That's convenient," he teases lightly.

As far as complications go, they're both bringing something a little on the sizable side to the table. Though that also helps to keep things all evened up, to keep things in balance. "It does have some advantages, doesn't it?" he agrees wryly. "I'll admit, I wasn't really sure how to bring this whole thing up, so this has made it a lot easier," he admits. "But yes, I definitely wouldn't mind a more thorough demonstration of what you can do. I can probably even help," he points out before the corners of his mouth curve upward, a little smirk sliding over his expression. "Not necessarily the show me yours and I'll show you mind I originally had in mind, but it should be fun too."
Stella Roundtree      "Really? We can do a space thing? Huh, this running into superpowered people has really worked out for me. Well other than the initial break up, but maybe it's more about the friends I met along the way," she teases. "And the one I live with."

     "I'm glad this worked out, though. I never know how to tell someone! Some guys have gotten very, very upset," she says, choosing her words carefully. "And some just looked like they were afraid I'd beat 'em up. And one just asked, 'aren't mutants supposed to be tall?'" she says with a sigh.

     "But honey, I've still got lots to show you. Some of it requires a little less clothing," she says, giving his thigh a squeeze. "So I look forward to our next date. But I'll show you one cool trick first. Check this out..." She reaches into her bag, pulling out a battery, and holds her dead phone in the other. "I'd say this is the best power, really." And as she holds them, the phone kicks on, logo in place, and the battery percentage ticks up to a hundred precent in a matter of seconds.
Hal Jordan Membership in the superheroic community does have it's rewards it would seem.

"I'm pretty pleased too, really," he admits with a quiet laugh though he grows serious quick enough when she mentions some of her less than ideal interactions in the past. "Sadly there doesn't really seem to be a way to fix stupid," he says with a slow shake of his head, giving her another gentle squeeze. "Hopefully you'll feel better about ending up with me once we've got a chance to do the whole space thing," he teases lightly.

"Mmmm, is that so? Well, I'll look forward to that," Hal admit with a faint grin, making a show of letting his eyes roam over her in lingering fashion before turning his attention to her trick, chuckling once more. "See? Now that's a pratical use of one's power," he admits. "Me next," he says, just a trickle of emerald energy flowing from that rin as a perfect, glowing replica of his cellphone -- all in green of course -- appears in his hand. "I never have to worry about leaving home without my phone. You should see what kind of reception it gets, even in the galactic core," he adds with a wink.
Stella Roundtree      "Oh, are you that confident that I'll give in to your charms?" Stella asks. "You do seem pretty smart and very brave so far, so I'm into it," she says. "And as long as that's my number on the phone, I'm a happy gal. So," she leans over and kisses his cheek. "I have to get to work. But I am looking forward to our next date. I'll be waitin' for either one of your phones to give me a call."