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Lights are on in the garage, a door slightly cracked for some fresh air spilling a bit of that light and some rock and roll radio, and Dizzy's singing along with some ditty about not knowing much about French or biology between the sounds of drilling on sheetmetal and pausing to puff at filings on occasion.
*
Cannonball meanders on into the garage with his flannel sleeves rolled up and heads over towards the working and singing mutant. He's quiet enough and that music is loud enough that he's likely to go unnoticed until he's fairly close. Then he drawls out, "What ya workin' on, Jules?" And he leans against the workbench with a palm.
*
Julie seems to be drilling into the A-pillar of a perfectly-brand-new-looking Pontiac Tempest wagon, one of those somewhat-modified GTO-package wagons that have been around for some months. This is the two-tone gold-tan and white one, "Oh, hey, Sam, just got these spotlights I ordered in, so doing an installation. Could probably use an extra pair of hands in a minute."
*
Cannonball nods amiably enough from where he's leaning. "Sure…ah was lookin' ta get mah hands a little dirty. Feels good ta work on somethin'. Course I'm used ta pick-up trucks and so on, but…somethin' like this is fine. Just…seems awful new ta be fiddlin' with. Who paid for this?"
*
Good neighbors lend tools. Better neighbors return them. "And stay out of the lake this time, dingbat," Danielle hollers over her shoulder as she tromps towards the garage, lugging a pole-holer over one shoulder. Mutter mutter. Horses. Mutter. "Hey guys," she greets, without breaking stride to hoist the cumbersome tool up to the storage rack she yoinked it from a few days ago.
*
Julie smirks and looks over there. "You know Warren? He's always looking for ways to help. We kinda needed some better transportation, so he kinda trusted me to make some orders and stuff. I kinda done some work for him on his stable and all." When Dani comes in, she smiles. "Ay, Danielle, howya doing?" She cocks her head at some piece of shop equipment, which happens to have a padlock that pops open at the gesture. "Anyone want a beer or something?"
*
m
"Oh yeah…Warren's richer than the Pope I spose." Sam grins and then lifts a hand to wave to Danielle, "I'll get beers." He offers, heading for the locked cabinet to open it the rest of the way and pull out as many as requested.
*
"Hmm. Sure, I'll take one," Dani agrees as she slaps her hands clean of lingering grit from the tool. "Handy thing, having a smart ride home." She accepts a bottle from Sam, tilting it in salute. "Downside is when that same ride gets tipsy. Starts thinking he can do loops…" Ahem. After a long drink, she muses, "Still fiddling with the wheels, Julie?"
*
Julie winks to Dani. "Always." She points at the fancier Tempest wagon. "The blue one's pretty plain-jane, but this one's got all the options that won't slow her down. Steerable spotlights oughtta help sometimes." There's already one on the passenger side. She says fiddles a bit to see that a gusset fits the holes she just drilled, and turns on a welding tank. "Ah, look away from this a second, wouldya?" She pulls down some dark goggles, and there's sparking sounds a four or five times as she tacks the little plate down. Then comes over to collect a beer for herself. "Oughtta help out in some situations, I figure."
*
Cannonball tosses a beer to Danielle. "Yeah…course." Sam agrees amiably enough with the ladies about the transportation situation. "Jules is using her powers ta help her out. What were you up to with yours, Danielle?"
*
Danielle halfturns her head and raises one arm a bit to block the dazzle of the tack-welds. "What, my powers, or my ride?" she quirks a grin at Sam. "Nevermind, answer's the same either way. Trying to keep both mostly under wraps and out of trouble. Though, honestly, some days it feels like I could pull a Lady Godiva and ride Brightwind down Broadway and nobody would look twice."
*
Julie smirks. "These got power of their own. If you want to use em, just sign up for my Advanced Drivers' Ed," she says. "Almost everything I make don't count on my powers, I just put some extra instruments in so's I don't cook gears if I do have to push it." She pops the top of a beer and adds, "There's a beat-up late model Chevy I keep in town that's kind of an exception. Geared down for messy stuff in the city, that won't run at highway speed too long without me."
*
Dizzy smiles to Danielle. "That horse, though, that's something else."
*
Cannonball scratches his hand through his blond, straw hair. "Ah don't need a car. Ahm my own car. Probly shouldn't ride a horse through New York, but…ah think yer right about it not gettin' too much attention. Course, if you were naked too, no one would see the horse at all." He waggles his brows.
*
Danielle laughs, wagging a finger at Sam for a moment. "Don't go getting any notions…" With another swig of beer, she begins to stroll around various vehicles, looking them over with a bit more interest. "It occurs to me I don't think I ever passed my basic Driver's Ed class. Took it at a ..weird time, then.. well. Things happen, and now .." she shrugs at Julie, offering simply, "Horse. Might not be the dumbest idea for me to at least figure out how to handle a ….normal car at some point. Before I need to figure out one of your specials."
As though listening in, a big white horse pokes his head around the corner of the garage, whickering curiously. Or impatiently. Or smartass-ishly. Whichever, it earns him a similar fingerwag from Dani, "And you watch yourself too, oatbreath."
*
Julie nods to Dani. "Well, the basics may not be quite as much fun, but I'm starting to think it could be my most important job around here. So many of us kinda missed out one way or another, along with the rest of regular schooling, you'd be surprised how many learned to fly, or just hide, before they could drive." She just smiles as the horse noses in. She's a city girl, but essentially grew up on the Lone Ranger and the like. She picks up an apple from something that may serve as a desk, and says to Dani, "These OK for magic horses?"
*
Cannonball grins crookedly, then sips his beer. "Hey…I can't make you do anything. I just fly around and run into things." He holds up a hand in surrender. "You gonna feed him? Don't let him take yer fingers, ya need em."
*
Brightwind turns a Look towards Sam that is unmistakably 'offended'. Dani ignores the Look, but assures, "Careful, he's smarter than he looks. And yeah, Jules, regular old Earth-stuff is just fine for him." She finishes off her bottle, and chucks it to the trash bin. "One of these days, I really oughta write a book on how quickly people can get used to weird-ass stuff." As if to prove her point, Brightwind plods more fully around the corner of the garage, happy to see Julie. And Julie's proffered apple. His huge white feathered wings are folded, relaxed, along his sides, his tail flicking lazily.
*
Julie winks, "Ay, like my Uncle Angelo says, everyone loves close air support." She sort of hold the apple up tentatively for Brightwind. Says, "Thanks for helping us out that time with the demons and stuff." She sighs a bit, seeing how the horse reacts. Says, almost as an aside, "Anyone heard of Senator Reilly? He's kinda stood up for mutants just lately, and someone put the bag on his daughter, it turns out. I was kinda there." Come to mention it, there's a couple of Band-aids on her forehead. "I don't got much to go on, but the bad guys used a custom Studey for a blocking vehicle, I been asking around through the car scene, but… I could maybe use some help if I find anything."
*
"Put the bag? What's that mean?" Sam asks curiously of the slang, unfamiliar with it. "Kidnapped? Killed? I'm happy to help, however I can, you know that."
*
The horse whuffles proudly at Julie, shaking his mane before gently leaning in to pluck the apple from her hand. As he contentedly munches the treat, he oh-so-innocently shuffles on his hooves to present his side and shoulder to the young woman, at just the right angle for rubbings.
"Hedonist," Dani mutters under her breath without looking. Then she frowns, just as curious as Sam about the slang, "Reilly's one of the good ones down there. If someone's targeting him and his family…"
*
Julie tentatively at first, tries rubbing Brightmane's neck, then, "Yeah, kidnapped is what that means. They was real pros, too, …well except maybe that blocking driver. He probably didn't have to peel out and leave traces like he did. Kinda hoping if I can find him, someone can do the brain thing…" She pauses to press fingers to temples in imitation of the Prof. "I figure he's from outta town, probably Cali. Might be looking to show up the locals, and it so happens we Botteros is the big Studey family around till just lately. Kinda hoping we can draw the guy out for some street racing."
*
"That's a lot of information, Jules. A lot. So you think you can find the driver…and from there, find the girl? Sure…spose we could, so…that what this thing is for? YOu gonna start racin' her through the streets ta get his attention?" Sam asks curiously, then chuckles at the idea of Julie being a street racer, for whatever reason.
*
Brightwind's muscles twitch slightly under the attention, and he makes a satisfied little sound. Yeah, he's not spoiled at allll. Danielle is paying more attention to the kidnapping situation. "I can't do the 'brain thing', but I can put the fear of various gods into them," she notes. "Hmm. If there's any chance of getting something..personal from the girl, I could ask Amanda to do some scrying. 'Yana might be willing to help there, too." She pauses for a long moment, then observes, "You know. If this isn't just a dumb attack, it could easily be a trap. If I wanted to set something up to make mutants look violent and out of control…"
*
Julie looks over to Cannonball there. "Nah. Boys talk. Boys brag. If he turns up somwhere, then we'll find him. Scene's slow this time of year, but if I'm right he'll be impatient cause out West we can run em all year. We just find him, Then somehow find out what he knows. A lot of guys, well, they find racing girls distracting, so, win or lose he might feel like talking." She taps the hood of the car. "I don't use powers in a race, by the way. Ain't fair."
Dizzy pauses to light a smoke. "They was violent enough when they grabbed her. Shot the driver with a high-powered rifle, took her, then firebombed the car with something that kinda blew me across the street. Hurt or killed a lotta people. But, anyway, I figure if we get a line on who done it, we go do the thing we do sometimes, be the good guys, and all that. I dunno if this guy I'm after even knows squat, but it's all I got."
*
Cannonball winces at the description. "It could be a trap, you're right. But…its not like you can just let it go that she was kidnapped. Have ta do somethin' ta find her. A scrye might help, but they'll have thought a that, surely. Might show a misleading location." Sam offers. "Ah should get on ta bed, ladies."
*
"And I should probably be getting back before it gets too late," Danielle concurs. But her furrowed brow doesn't lighten just yet. "Keep us posted, Julie, yeah? Keep digging, but holler when you find anything. You got plenty of backup to call on, including me and Sam."
*
Julie nods, also pats the horse. "Jenny'd love to meet you, you know," she says to said horse. Nods more seriously. "If I get anything to go on, it could happen fast. Just seems… least we can do is try."