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The business heart of the city is a busy place, with men in suits and secretaries in dresses bustling down the street at the end of the day nears. Crystal is just coming out of one of the larger banks, having finished a bit of financial business for the Institute. There were a few looks the first time she came in, but once her credentials were established, the employees were much more agreeable.
Though the sky itself is still light, the sun has begun to sink behind the tall buildings here, casting heavy shadows along the streets. Crystal checks her watch, stepping back from the street as a group of young businessmen moves loudly by on their way to evening drinks. Her next stop is a bar herself, one where she's heard a certain type of people visit. The problem is, she has to figure out how to get there. So still in the doorway, she pulls a map out of her purse, poring over it.
*
Well, he's a man and he is in a suit. Amadeus Cho hadn't been walking, however, and was indeed riding on his silver Vespa through the streets of midtown. He wears a black 'skullcap' style helmet on his head with a white Jolly Roger printed on it. So tough. In a world of constant datastreams and a barrage of mathematical information no normal mind can fathom, however there are several things he takes note of all in the span of nanoseconds as he zips along.
Van: Inbound at 25mph, opposite side. Worn rear driver's side axle. Stoplight: Green, flickering due to a minor short. Pack of businessmen: Hunting for the evening. Puppy: Secure? A high-pitched growl-yip can be heard from the inside of his jacket. Puppy: Secure. Lady that walked out of the bank: Pretty. In need of assistance.
The Vespa comes to as much of a screeching halt as…a Vespa can come to a screeching halt. Don't mess this up, Cho. He parks on the side of the street and then hops off the vehicle. In short order, the helmet is taken off and hung on the moped before he's right on his way over. "Hey, miss? Need some help?" Amadeus Cho: 5'6, 117 pounds with the most embarassing case of helmet hair imaginable.
*
Points in his favor for looking unthreatening, though. Normally, Crystal would probably smile politely and demur before moving on to somewhere she'd be less likely to be approached. This particular young man, though, looks like he's probably not going to cross any lines.
Looking both ways across the sidewalk to make sure she doesn't wander into anyone's path, Crystal skips down the stairs with a friendly smile, holding the map over toward him. "I'm trying to get to…" Pausing, she opens her purse to pull out a matchbook with an address and a number on it. "The Ivory Trade. It's supposed to be a piano bar, and they said it wasn't far off Broadway? But I'm afraid I haven't gotten the hang of the streets here yet."
*
Lifting a brow at her, the young man looks up and down the street quickly enough. It's not a place he's been either as he's just arrived in the city not long ago himself. What he's done is read a map, so it really is just a process of elimination. Pulling forth history, city planning algorithms, and popular culture, he narrows it down to a few places. There is something that gives him pause. "Oh!" he chirps. "Well, hey, I can give you a lift. You have to admit to there being some divine providence at play here. You're asking directions to a piano bar from a guy named Amadeus. That's me." He extends a hand smartly, standing…trying to stand a bit taller. "Amadeus Cho."
"As to our conundrum," Amadeus says to her. "I'm from Arizona myself and this is my first day in the city. I can offer the assurance that if you stick with me, you'll see the end of your quest and all of the piano and bar you can handle." The matchbook is studied by Amadeus, eyes squinting just a touch at it. This makes it easier. The datastreams are at work, flashing like lightning through his head. The symbol eliminates a couple more places. "Take into account traffic, average speed, stoplight cycles around the city…" He tilts his head from one side to the other, scrunching his face up just slightly. "We're looking at between five and fifteen minutes depending on which side of Broadway it's on. Copasetic?"
*
Crystal shifts the map and her purse until she can take his hand in a light grip, smile flashing. "Crystal," she introduces herself, though she gives the Vespa an uncertain look. "Are you sure that thing can carry two?" She might be teasing. She's probably teasing. Right?
Still, she folds up the map, tucking it back into her purse and giving the Vespa one more long look. "Well. It's likely safer than a cab, at least. You're sure it won't be out of your way?" she asks, looking back to Cho.
*
The smile is returned as she takes his hand to shake it. The sudden movement on that side of his body causes the lump in his suit jacket to stir a bit. Suddenly, a fuzzy grey head pops up from the inside of his jacket to look around. In particular, those big puppy eyes fix to Crystal sleepily. A high-pitched wine accompanies quite possibly the most adorable yawn in the universe. "Nice to meet you and…oh." When he retrieves his hand from her, he uses it to scritch the little fuzzball on the head. "This is Kirby."
With introductions out of the way, Amadeus takes a step backwards towards his scooter again. "Of course it can. You only weigh 110 pounds. We're still under maximum capacity." With a shrug of his shoulder then, he takes another step back. "Don't worry about it, though. I wasn't on my way to anything important."
*
"Oh my goodness." Crystal presses her lips together, trying to hold back a grin when the pup sticks his head out. "That is…unspeakably adorable. All right. I refuse to believe that anyone driving around with a puppy in his coat is up to anything nefarious."
"I don't know if they let dogs inside, but you'll have to let me buy you a drink if they do. Thank you," she adds quickly, stepping up to the Vespa and trying to decide the best way to actually get on-board. "I've been into the city several times lately, but I swear, I can never seem to connect one part I've been to with another."
*
Amadeus looks down at Kirby and gives a little half-smile down to him. "He's my best friend," he says, as if that should explain absolutely everything. Well, not everything. "Oh, he's not a dog, though. He's a coyote." This probably does nothing but raise more questions, but it's clearly what he's sticking with. The puppy looks up at Cho as he looks down and cranes up to give puppy kisses. The young man's face scrunches up and one eye closes. "Alright, alright."
Looking back up to Crystal, he wrinkles his nose up a bit at her. "Don't worry. I can keep him hidden. If you're not cool with that, it's alright." With a shrug then, he reachesback to grab the Jolly Roger helmet and hand it over to her. "Safety first. I have redundancies in place." With that, he swings one leg over the seat and scooches up just a bit. "Eh. I'm sure it'll come to you after a while. New York City wasn't so much /planned/ as it grew like a weed."
*
"I'm usually all right if I can stick to the larger streets," Crystal admits, hesitating a moment as she takes the helmet. She knows she'd likely be fine in an accident. But manners suggest she should put it on all the same. So put it on she does, before shuffling her skirts a bit to climb onto the Vespa.
"I've a dog of my own I don't get to see very much right now. I fully support sneaking him inside," she grins, adjusting her skirts one more time once she's balanced on the back. "All right. I think I have the knack of this. I place my life in your hands, Amadeus Cho. Don't let me down."
*
"I can understand that," replies Amadeus, giving her a casual upnod. He does seem rather happy about her stance on sneaking the little coyote pup into the piano bar. Checking to make sure the tiny animal is secure, he cradles his arm under the lump and lifts a little. Once he's sure the pup is safe and secure, he puts the key into the ignition and starts the moped up. "Sorry to hear about your dog. Pretty busy, I take it. Everyone around here is busy I've noticed.
He drives the Vespa out and towards stop one; the most likely place. As it so happens, he's right on the first go and it isn't terribly far away. The trip is quick, uneventful, and really quite easy. As soon as he pulls up on the other side of the street from the place, he parks the moped and lets Crystal off first."
*
"It's more of a space issue, really." There's an understatement. Then again, when your dog is the size of a couple of grizzly bears, that sort of thing gets complicated.
Once they've reached the bar, Crystal leans back to get a look at the sign, comparing it to the little matchbook. "I can't believe you found it that easily," she says, looking a little bit sheepish. "Thank you." Climbing off the Vespa, she steps back to wait for him. There's another sort of hesitation to it, though, as she eyes the sign. As if she's not quite sure what's waiting for her inside and is questioning the decision to come here.
*
"Easy is relative," Amadeus tells her with a broad grin. Once she's 'exited' the vehicle, he takes his helmet back, hangs it on the scooter, and swing his leg over as well. "I did eight-million, two-thousand-five statistical calculations to narrow it down to three places." This is spoken with a cocky little shrug of one shoulder. "Piece of cake for some. So have you been in the city long?" After the question is asked he leans down over the mirror on his Vespa and quickly tries to fix his hair while wrangling a growingly-excited puppy. "I'm going to see if he has to go first. He has no qualms about peeing on me."
A happy little yip comes from the inside of his jacket. He lifts the little pup from his jacket and sets him on the grass near one of the trees that occasionally pop up here in midtown.
*
"Definitely a good choice," Crystal agrees, smile flashing over her shoulder as she considers the bar. "I'm actually staying outside the city. I found a place I rather like. But I've been in the area for…five or six weeks, I suppose?" If she's going to go inside with him, there's no point in avoiding the reasons.
"My sister's been missing for years, you see. So my parents and I have been trying to find her. We heard rumors that suggested she might be in the city, but…" Trailing off, she lifts one shoulder in a slight shrug, smile crooked. "I don't suppose the calculations for finding one woman in the city are any easier than the ones for finding a bar?"
*
Amadeus looks thoughtfully at the woman, listening intently to her. Meanwhile, Kirby is less interested in the conversation and is relieving himself near the tree. Even after she's done speaking, Amadeus stays silent for a time before finally giving a nod of his head. "I'd need a lot more infortmation, but I could give it a shot. That…is going to be a twenty cheeseburger job, minimum." Years, she'd said. That trail will be ice cold. He moves forward towards the bar and grabs the door, holding it in true gentleman fashion.
"But I can help, yeah." Something a touch more sad crosses his features, but it fades quickly enough. With a broad smile, he gestures to her. "I get it. Finding estranged family and all. I'll do what I can, but it might take a bit longer than simply finding a bar in an old city."
*
"I work in operations for a school," Crystal laughs as she steps inside. "If it's cheeseburgers that strike your fancy, I'm entirely capable of rounding them up in mass quantities. I was actually hoping I might catch wind of her here," she admits, looking over the people inside.
The lighting is low and warm, with plenty of dark wood and lush red materials, At first glance, the people inside all look normal enough. On a second look,though, there are subtle suggestions that not all of them are entirely…normal. A glimpse of blue hair here, a pointed ear there. A glass that seems to move of its own accord. In M-Town, there are mutants who can't pass for human, ones who struggle with prejudice. Here? Here are the few, the fortunate, the wealthy.
*
A nod is given to Crystal as, now that Kirby is done, Amadeus is in the process of lifting him back into his jacket. "Well, we should find somewhere to sit so that you can fill me in on the details," he states, perhaps too obviously. As they make their way into the place, he feels immediately exposed. He gently clutches the little lump of puppy in his jacket as he moves with no small amount of trepidation inside. Noticably, his pace slows.
"Huh," he sounds from behind her as he gives a slow pan over the place. The few, fortunate, and wealthy indeed. Sure one couldn't call him 'normal' by any stretch, but he is still just a human. When his brain engages, though, he seems a little less uncomfortable. "Do you have a picture of her? Last known wherabouts?"
*
"No picture, I'm afraid," Crystal shakes her head, moving toward the bar until she can find a pair of seats beside each other. She doesn't look intimidated by the status or wealth of the people in the room, but then again, none of them seem to recognize her, either. "I can describe her, though. And the last we heard of her for certain was in Paris."
Slipping onto a stool, she sets her purse down at her side with a smile for the bartender. "She's a few inches taller than I am. Green eyes. Red hair, but a much deeper, brighter red than mine. And it's floor length," she adds. "Which usually stands out."
*
"That will not make it easier," Amadeus says, slowly shaking his head. As they reach the stools, he slips up into the one next to her and starts putting his brain to work. Lifting a hand, he strokes over his chin somewhat distractedly as he considers the problem at hand. Fortunately, he's very good at solving problems. "Tell me a bit about her. Does she have any tell-tale quirks? Routines?" He gestures in a circular motion with his hand, concentrating on the answers that she gives. "Paris, paris. I don't know if I can do Paris, but I might just be able to track her down. Did you track her here? New York City's a big place. I'll definitely have my work cut out for me." Exhaling in slight exaspiration, he lifts his gaze to her again. "Floor length, deep red hair is an excellent start, though."
*
"Well, her name is Medusa." Crystal smiles crookedly at the name. No doubt she's heard more than a few opinions about that name. "That usually stands out. She's very…regal. Self-possessed. We tracked a rumor here. As we've been listening for her, we've found that she has a tendency to fall in with…Well, with thieves."
She looks sheepish, pausing long enough to put in an order with the bartender for a glass of champagne for herself, looking to Amadeus for his order.
*
"Narrowing it down a bit more," Cho says, taking a moment to rub at the back of his neck. He's clearly very focused on her words, chopping off several social groups from the list. There are still a lot of variables where that's involved, this being New York and all. Several more moments of silence pass before he finally takes in a deep breath. "Anything else specific about her you might be able to tell me?" he asks, giving a quick look around the room again.
Looking up to her then and distracting himself from his thoughts for a moment, he just smiles at her. "Oh. Glass of wine for me. Red." Not the most sophisticated of tastes, this one. The last time he drank, he had that, though.
*
Crystal waits until the bartender has gone to get the drinks before she answers the question, though even then it's with a long look at him, weighing his possible reactions. "She can…control her hair," she explains, tucking her own behind her ear. "Every strand of it, however she wants to."
*
Amadeus has heard far stranger things. He's spent time around Hulk, after all. That gets strange rather fast. While it does raise a brow, he also doesn't seem ready to outright dismiss her. "So if she tends to fall in with thieves and she can control her hair. There might be a way to get answers about that. Possibly." Taking a deep breath inward then he goes back to concentrating on the problem at hand. "What class of thieves? I can't imagine she'd be…small potatoes or anything."
*
"The last one was a jewel heist in Paris," Crystal nods, taking a sip from her flute. "We'd heard there were people here looking for a similar skill set, so…We came here. I've only heard whispers every now and then, though. Enough to make me think we're getting close, but not enough to get me to her." Her fingers tap on the barter, distracting her. "I worry about her. None of what we've heard sounds like her, not the way she was."
*
The conversation continues. Plans will be made…