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Summary: Bruce happens upon a strange boy in the park.
Log Title: The Strange Stranger
Rating: PG
NYC- Thompson Square Park
Thompson Square Park is a small park in the middle of Mutant Town. The benches might need a fresh coat of paint, the fence might be rusted in places and the pavement is raised and has cracks but it's all part of the mutant haven and fairly relaxing. Trees and grassy areas are in between the many paths, there are a few structures and benches along the path as well as a special area of the park that is marked 'the dog walk'.
Two trees have been planted in the park as a Memorial to Carmencita Florez and Detective Baxter each with a plaque stating the tree is in their memory.
Scene
The park is actually fairly crowded at this time of day. Partly it has to do with the time, many people are out of work now and passing through on their way home. A few are sitting around or jogging, and some kids are playing with a dog out on a small field. Another reason for the large number of people is the break in the rain that has finally arrived. After a week of rain the sun is finally out, though it is still a bit cool.
Bruce is standing off to one side of the park, watching the people as they go about their business. He is wearing jeans and a green jacket, leaning against a young tree with a memorial plack on it. "Eh. Looks like things are pretty normal, eh Detective? Maybe if we're lucky things'll stay quiet for a while."
Now that he's under the watchfull eye of SHIELD Kai is having to focus on being a normal teenager pretty much every minute of the day, he's actually headed out into the city to relax a little, he's dressed in black jeans, black converse, a black hoodie, hood up with a red t-shirt underneath, wandering across the park he spots a man he reckognises, after a couple of seconds trying to place him it hits him, it's the sand manipulator.
No one seems to find it odd that there is a man apparently talking to a tree in this park. A few people offer Bruce a friendly wave while others seem to go out of their way to avoid walking past him. A couple shoot him nasty glances which the mutant currently ignores. "What about that one? He's dressed a little shady…Granted a bunch o' these American kids seem to dress like that these days." He's looking at Kai, still talking quietly to the tree or whoever the tree is in memory of. Anyone who gets close enough to read the plaque will discover it is one of two trees dedicated to people who recently lost their lives in a police incident.
Kai raises an eyebrow as the man appears to be talking to himself, "A wire maybe?", he doesn't know of the incident with the police officers as it was before his move to New York City, "Hmm or possiby delusional?", last he saw the man he was being arrested by Iron Man, how'd he escape?
"Hmmm. Looks like that kid's talking to himself. Hope he don't got a wire on him or something. Last thing I need are more crazies with guns. Then again, maybe he's just crazy…Hey there kiddo, you be good fer yer mum, alright?" That last part was to the son of a mutant he knows from the bar. The two wandered past and offered a quick hello. Bruce goes back to studying Kai. He was out of the area a bit after the arrest. And before the arrest he wasn't quite himself. Memories from back then are a bit jumbled.
Kai walks over to Bruce reaching into his hoodie pocket and pulling out a pair of glasses and putting them on, standing right in front of Bruce he frowns, "Who are you?", he looks Bruce up and down as if he's looking for something, he looks at the tree behind him and makes a note of the names on it.
Bruce quirks a brow at the kid and seems to ponder what to do for a moment. "I'm….A my name is Bruce. Do you generally walk around all creepy like and then approach strangers to ask them their names? That is…Probably not normal…I guess." Definitely not anyone he's seen at Nowhere. "WWhy, do I look familiar? I've been on TV a couple times." Granted he's usually a large sand monster on the TV, but he leaves that part out.
Kai shakes his head then stops, "I'm creepy?, is that rude?, am i being rude?", he stops examining the man and steps back, "You look like a man i saw laying on the floor in his underwear surrounded by sand", he too makes no mention of the sand monster, "I wonder why that is huh?", the sentance is an odd mixture of a question and a statement.
Bruce frowns slightly and scratches the side of his face with one finger. "Ah…Yeah it's a bit strange." Maybe this guy just has some social disorder. "Oh yeah if you saw me in me skivvies in a pile of sand that was probably me. had a rough…couple weeks a few months back. All better now though. Hopefully I didn't, ya know…try to kill you or anything when you last saw me."
Kai hmms but doesn't switch back to his well practised teen personality, this guy is of no use nor is he a threat to his objective, "Yeah you did, wouldn't have succeeded though", this isn't cockyness as far as he's conserned that is a basic fact, "Who were you talking to?"
Bruce still looks at the kid a bit confused. "Well that's good I guess…Why would I not have? Are you like that ghost kid…Who it occurs to me you have probably never met. Actually i wonder what happened to him. I don't think he could have died since he was a ghost…" He finds himself talking to himself about this and shakes his head, "No I was talking to the tree earlier. Or rather the Detective this tree is dedicated to. Not that he can respond because he died a while back. Just…You know. People do that. It's not that strange."
"You're too slow and you rely on brute force, you wouldn't have a hope of taking me out", Kai crosses his arms, "Ghosts don't exist, people tell stories but there is no real proof and i have no idea that ghost kid is", he walks past Bruce to the tree, why would you talk to someone with no way of hearing you, it's not productive".
"Ghosts are totally real. Don't even joke about that." He looks totally serious, "Granted I think Ghost Kid was a mutant of some kind." He shakes his head, "And I don't know how often you watch me fight but I can be pretty fast. You probably just saw me as a giant Dingo if you happened to see me when I was on Kick." Bruce glances at the tree. "It's more just a way of talking my way through stuff, figuring it out. A lot of people talk to the dead without expecting a real response."
Kai places a finger on the plaque, "The dead have no use anymore, they don't do anything, i don't understand the interest in them, it's pointless", he removes his finger leaving hehind and icy fingerprint, "Ghosts are real?, so that thing behind you isn't my imagination then?"
Bruce looks a bit annoyed with this kid's line of questioning. "What do you mean the dead have no use? Of course they do. Carmencita there almost started a war when she died. And this guy here pretty much stopped it from happening when he died." He juts thumbs at the plaques on the trees and crosses his arms. Then his expression slowly changes as what the boy said slowly dawns on him. A flurry of sand kicks up near the two mens' feet and seems to blow past Bruce. Detecting no obstructions behind him the man slowly turns. "What are you talking about? there's nothing there."
Kai shakes his head, "Thats a consequence of death not a use of the dead", he turns round with a grin on his face switching to his teen persona, "I was just kidding a little, chill out sandman", he should stick with the Kai persona to stay on the safe side.
Bruce turns back around and frowns at the kid. "I'm not Sandman. I think he's still in jail…I assume. I've never actually met him. Common mistake though, for some reason. Though I'm much better looking than him." He says this so matter of fact that it seems he truly believes this. "And I don't think he's natural. I heard someone made him that way." The kid seems to be acting differently now. "And I mean, there are ghosts and all that out there. One of my regulars at the bar is a demon." Bruce glances at his watch and then looks back at the kid. “Um…Anyway…I suppose I should be heading out now. Got some things I need to get done.” He wanders off, glancing back at Kai over his shoulder. What a weirdo.
~ Fin ~
