Fire-Breathing...Princess (Vincent)

[Arlene Baines]

Arlene Baines had closed her store for the day and decided that she wanted to visit one of the many bars the town seemed to offer in an attempt to try and make some new friends. She'd been so busy lately that she hadn't had any extra energy to spare so far for a social agenda. But tonight was different! She was going to go out and make friends...or one friend...an acquaintance...she was going to talk to someone tonight over drinks! Yes! With that idea in mind she had locked her shop, put her key into her bag and set off, her heels clipping on the sidewalk.

She wasn't aware she was being watched when she locked her store, and she was even more unaware when a would-be thief snuck up on her and tried to steal the expensive purse dangling from her elbow. Except that Arlene was stronger than she looked and tightened her arm enough that her muscles trembled. "Well I NEVER!" she exclaimed angrily as a heeled foot came up to kick the their on the side of their leg. When he (it sounded like a he) made a grunt of what sounded like pain Arlene kicked him again and the dislodged him from her person by aiming her next kick for his groin. As he stumbled back she rounded on him. "How dare you try and take my purse! Who do you think you are?! It's wrong to steal! Are you hungry? Do you lack a job to feed yourself? Or are you just a no-good ruffian out to make a little extra money?!" she screeched as the thief managed to get back onto his feet. Even with her heels she was still shorter than said thief and she took an uncertain step back, clutching her purse to her chest she squeaked when she bumped into a much larger body behind her. She was suddenly too scared to look behind her.

She really hoped the thief hadn’t had back up waiting.

[Vincent Romanov]

Vincent had decided a night out was better than another night home alone. So, after work, he had went home and cleaned up before setting off for the small club district of Pilot Ridge. Usually he preferred smaller bars or steakhouses, but tonight he wanted something a bit different. He didn't dress any different than he normally did. Jeans with a tight fitting black tee and work boots. Yeah, Vincent was a fashion guru. So he kept things simple, after a day of dealing with angst ridden teenagers who could literally spit fire, he wanted something simple.

Vincent strolled through the district or around the outskirts of it to be honest. He was slowly enjoying a cigar, a vice he indulged in once a month. It was a nice night, the weather was a bit cool but not enough to require a coat or jacket. He could hear music coming from a few of the places around him and he smiled. It felt good to be out of that monkey suit he had to wear back at Hammel. Tonight was a much needed break from pace....Or so he thought. It wouldn't be long before Vincent heard the sounds of a scuffle. He tried to ignore the sounds for just a split second but his conscience wouldn't let him. Vincent was a protector, it was in his genes. So, setting off in the direction of the sounds, Vincent readied himself for what he thought was going to be a fight. When he arrived to the place where the sounds of the fight were taking place, he stopped and smiled. It seemed he wasn't needed after all.

A small framed woman was yelling at another man on the ground at her feet. Judging from the way he was holding himself Vincent knew the source of the man's pain. He grimaced in sympathy pain, but only for a second as this guy no doubt deserved what he got. Vincent stopped a step or two behind the woman, watching the man on the ground. He knew they guy was going to get up and when he did, he was going to be mad. The woman had held her own so far, but she looked like she might need a small bit of back up. Good thing Vincent decided to stick around, for the thief got to his feet and looked like he was going to take out his anger on the woman in spades. The young woman realized this too apparently, judging by the small screech and her quick back peddling. She didn't back peddle far as she ran into Vincent, his ability stopping her dead, but to be honest, his large size alone was enough to stop her.

The woman didn't turn around, out of fear Vincent surmised. She probably thought Vincent was with this creep or something. The thief stopped as well, giving Vincent the once over. Vincent just stood there and took a draw off his cigar. He let a large cloud of smoke fill the air around him and smiled at the thief. "I get one of these a month pal and if I ruin it because of your dumb ass....well, then I'm gonna make sure you spend the rest of your life sucking your meals through a straw," Vincent said casually. There wasn't any apparent reason for him to be afraid of this would be thief. The thief stood there a minute, looking from Vincent to the girl and back to Vincent. Then what was perhaps the smartest decision in the man's pathetic life, the thief took off in the opposite direction, rather quickly. Vincent laughed and stepped back, giving the woman a bit of room. "You okay?," he asked Arlene, stepping beside her now, watching the thief disappear into the night.

[Arlene Baines]

Arlene had stayed relativly close to the man who turned out to be a friend rather than a foe until the thief ran off. When he stepped back she stepped forward and turned around, hair bouncing against her back lightly. "Yes. I'm fine," she answered quietly with a heavy amount of gratitude in her voice. She didn't necessarily approve of smoking but her father had indulged in the habit enough that it was more of a "please don't do it in my house" request as opposed to a "don't do it around me ever" request. "Thank you very much," she added as she studied the man who had helped her. He was tall, she noted immediately...very tall. He was also rather broad, no wonder that would-be thief had been to quick to run away.

"My name is Arlene Baines and I'd like to buy you a drink Mr. ~ ?" she held her hand out for him to shake, once again repositioning her bag properly so that she could shake his hand without it being awkward. She was technically reaching her goal of drinking with someone tonight if he accepted her invitation and perhaps they could be friends as well. He didn’t seem like a bad man, he had come to her rescue after all, and not many men did that anymore for whatever reason. So he deserved a reward for his chivalry on the off chance that he happened to run into this same problem again.

[Vincent Romanov]

Confident that the thief was gone for sure, Vincent looked at Arlene now. He was used to others being smaller than him so the size difference didn't cross his mind. He was just glad that he happened by because if not, Arlene's night would have been worse. She seemed a bit shaken, but held herself together well. The little ones were always so full of fire. Vincent switched his cigar to his other hand and held it sort of to his side so as not to bother Arlene with its smell. He was a considerate smoker when he indulged. Not many people today liked smoking, but Arlene seemed to care less at the moment. Vincent was glad because he really didn't want to snuff his cigar, it was one of the few real joys of the month. He took Arlene's hand as firmly as he dared, because you know, super strength and all. "Romanov, but call me Vincent, I hear Mr. Romanov enough at work," he said with a laugh, letting go of Arlene's hand. "And yeah, you can buy drinks anytime, because beer always tastes better when its free," he said jokingly....but not really.

Vincent was a pretty laid back guy in his free time despite the years of military service under his belt but in reality, military guys weren't as strict and rigid as most people thought. He wasn't about to turn down a free beer plus the whole point of coming out tonight was to not be alone. Vincent took a step back to give Arlene a bit of breathing space so he could take another draw from his cigar. He made sure to turn away when he exhaled so as not to bother Arlene with the smoke. "You got anywhere particular in mind? To get those drinks?," he asked giving Arlene a smile. Vincent was really glad he had come out tonight because if not, he might be reading about Arlene's mugging in tomorrow's paper.

Vincent had always been protective of others. He saw it as is responsibility. Even when he was just a kid, even before he manifested, Vincent had been taught by his father to always protect those who couldn't protect themselves. His old man had seen a lot of abuse by those with power back in his old homeland of Russia and while America wasn't much better, at least it was a fresh start for him. That one lesson really took hold and stuck with Vincent after his sister was born, an act which probably saved her life all those years ago. Now that Vincent thought about, Arlene didn't look too much different from his sister. Their body size and the color of their hair was roughly identical and they shared a few facial traits as well.

[Arlene Baines]

"Vincent, I understand. You may call me Arlene if you'd like, Ms. Baines if you don't," she teased with a smile, withdrawing her hand. "And yes in fact I do know a place nearby," she said as she motioned down the street a bit with her hand to indicate that he should follow her. She led the way down the street to a small, out of the way door that was rather well kept given it's location, the sign indicating that it was a drinking establishment.

"Usually they have a dress code for men but I'll tell them that you are my guest and they should be fine with that," she said over her shoulder as she easily opened the door and stepped inside the rich atmosphere. She spoke briefly with someone close to the door and then motioned for Vince to follow her once more to a small table towards the back of the bar where they could converse in relative privacy. She arranged her dress just so in the club chair that faced the room more than it faced the table and tucked her purse into the small basket at her feet. When the waiter arrived she ordered a vodka cranberry, "and a beer for my guest," she finished quietly before the man scurried away. With their order placed Arlene turned to look at Vince and crossed her ankles daintily.

"So, Vincent. You mentioned you are Mr. Romanov at work, what is it that you do?" she asked curiously. "If it's not impolite to pry," she added apologetically.

[Vincent Romanov]

Vincent followed Arlene down the street to a little out of sight club, one Vincent probably had walked past numerous times. He sort of grimaced at the thought of a dress code, indicating his natural hate for dressing up. Hammel practically had to force him to put on that suit day in and day out, it was like wearing a mobile prison. Vincent liked things that felt natural to wear, things that you could get dirty and not really care if you did. In that suit, he felt like he had to be careful of everything he touched. Thankfully though, Arlene assured him that he would be alright dressed like he was because he would be a guest of hers. That statement brought its own look as well, because it meant Arlene must frequent this bar a lot. That was fine though, it meant she wasn't a lightweight when it came to drinking. Vincent himself was a professional drinker and it took a barrel of beer for him to feel anything.

He followed her inside the establishment, pausing long enough for Arlene to work her magic with the guy at the door. The guy let Vincent through without any protest. Vincent nodded and followed Arlene to their table and the epic chair which flanked them. He had to admit that dressing a bit more nicely would be worth the price for being able to sit in these chairs. He settled himself in comfortably, letting out a sigh and some of the tension from the day. It would have been better if Vincent could actually make his muscles relax, but being the man he was, that was easier said than done. Vincent found it hard to really relax, he had ever since being discharged. Yeah, it was ten or so years ago, but events still haunted him from time to time. Arlene ordered the drinks when the waiter came by and Vincent let her with a smile. Arlene was apparently a strong young woman and didn't mind taking the lead a bit. Vincent sort of liked that, it meant she wasn't afraid.

When the waiter left, Vincent settled in the chair some more and turned to Arlene as she spoke. Her question wasn't intrusive and Vincent wasn't keeping his job a secret from anyone. He didn't try to hide the fact he was meta and since Pilot Ridge was more accepting of his kind, there wasn't a need to dodge the question either. "I'm head of security at Hammel, have been for ten years. Give or take a year or two," he said with a smile, "What about you?," he asked, curious as to what such a well put together woman might do for a living. He surmised she was educated and had some money. The way she was dressed and the choice of her drink told Vincent a few things about his current company, but nothing exactly personal.

[Arlene Baines]

"Security at Hammel?" Arlene repeated with some surprise. She thought that perhaps Vincent was a police officer or perhaps a fire-fighter. She thought back ten years ago (well as much as she could given the haze of her memories she often had) and tried to think if Vincent looked familiar. When he didn't she chalked it up to just not paying attention since she hadn't ever gotten into trouble as a student. The waiter returned with their drinks and left just as quickly. "Well, my story is a bit more involved. Currently I run an antique store in town and I appraise items for customers outside of Pilot Ridge if necessary. I'm trying to place you back at Hammel but I can't, I'm terribly sorry," she said as she took her drink and sipped it slowly.

"Ten years is a long time though, is there a particular reason why you stayed for so long in the same position?" she wondered. She relaxed back into her chair and set her drink on the table, her fingers drifting down to the leather of the seats and appreciating the weight behind the history these chairs had. They were quite old after all. She settled back a bit further and shifted so that her legs were fully crossed, fluffing her dress to a more appropriate position as she took her drink back in hand and sipped at it again. She studied Vincent a little and determined that he must be in his late thirties or early forties, using her sister and brother-in-law as a basis for this guess; which meant he might be around the same age as her sister. That was a bit strange to think about since she’d always assumed that her sister’s friends were far, far too old to be pleasant or interesting conversationalists.

[Vincent Romanov]

Vincent had seen a lot of people come and go at Hammel, both staff and students. Some he had managed to interact with, others he had not. The students Vincent managed to know usually were the ones who lived life on the wrong side of the tracks. Generally, most of the students Vincent actually dealt with personally were those he took pity on. Kids who never stood a chance in the world because no one gave them the chance. Vincent tried to mentor those who were willing to listen and even offered his time to those still refused to listen to what he had to say. Vincent believed everyone deserved a chance to change, a chance to make something of themselves, but he also knew that some were just beyond help. With all that said, Arlene wouldn't have crossed paths with Vincent back at Hammel unless she was one of the troubled.

The waiter brought their drinks and Vincent nodded a silent thanks to the man as he took his beer. The beer was cold and fresh, a welcome beverage to a long day. Vincent drank half his beer in one go, a testament to his love of drinking. Vincent wasn't a drunk mind you, he had developed a high tolerance to beer a long time ago. In the military, you had to find something to help you unwind, because if you didn't, that life would eat you up. He smiled as he put his drink down, realizing he might look somewhat like a drunk to Arlene. She sat there, across from him, looking far more sociable. Arlene's job was impressive, at least to Vincent. She no doubt was intelligent and driven. Her question though, soon took precedence over his other thoughts. Vincent hadn't really stopped to think about all that time he had spent doing one thing, working at the same place. The job at Hammel just felt natural, like it was a part of who he was. Vincent supposed others might have tried to work their way further into the private sector, but Vincent didn't really want a position of power. Sure, he was head of security, but that was because he knew the job better than most. Vincent had never really set out to be the head of Hammel security, it just sort of happened.

Clearing his throat after a moment, Vincent sat back in the chair and drummed his fingers on the leather arm. "Never really thought about doing anything else I suppose. Hammel was my home away from home, it always felt right. Hammel helped make me who I am, I suppose I owe them something," he said, not really sure what to say. Hammel was a large part of Vincent. So many good people, working together despite their individual beliefs to try and make the world a better place, one student at a time. "To be honest, part of the reason I stay at Hammel is because of the students. They need a place to feel safe, to feel like they have protection from the outside world. I may not be the smartest or possess the flashiest meta ability, but one thing I can do, is protect those kids," he added, smiling a bit as he thought about some of those kids.

[Arlene Baines]

"That is a very noble goal," Arlene praised quietly, though not condescendingly as she set her drink back down again. She sat up a bit straighter and motioned to a nearby waiter to approach before she quietly ordered a plate of whatever the chef suggested as an hors d'oeuvre to go with the drinks both she and her guest both currently had.

Once the waiter had scurried away Arlene returned her attention to Vincent and observed him for a moment. "What is your ability?" she queried finally, unable to see anything about him that might give her a hint as to what it might be. “I have a retrocognition ability. Its object specific though, not people so your secrets and memories are safe with me,” she added with a small smile.

[Vincent Romanov]

Vincent watched silently as Arlene ordered an appetizer to go with their drinks. She had no problem taking the lead in the evening. Vincent didn't mind, it meant Arlene was a strong woman. He had already surmised she was independent and head strong from the earlier altercation he had helped her with. Arlene was amusing to be around even though she had this feel of superiority about her. She didn't act stuck up, she just had this aura about her. Arlene was the sort of people Vincent enjoyed being around.

Some metas were very open about their powers, especially to other metas. Vincent didn't brag much about his ability, he liked to keep people guessing because his power relied on people attacking him. If they thought he only possessed super strength, then he could use that to his advantage. He would often feign being hurt and beat down to further encourage his opponent to continue physically attacking him. Then once he had enough juice to end the fight in once move, he would strike. Arlene was different and Vincent sort of had this strong feeling she wasn't going to be attacking him anytime soon. So with that said, Vincent felt safe enough to let his little secret out. "Well the fancy term for what I do is kinetic energy absorption and conversion. Basically when you break it down, it means I absorb any physical strike or attempt to cut me. However much force is used against me becomes a part of me and once I have that I can convert that force or energy into various uses. I can increase my strength, stamina, speed and endurance. That sort of comes in handy in my line of work," he said casually, laying out his ability to its bare bones. "I've met a few retrocogs in my time and I've noticed they tend to make people nervous. Me? I've seen so many abilities that I'm sort of numb to them anymore. If someone really wants to see the secrets in this head, they won't see many," he said, laughing a bit at the last part.

[Arlene Baines]

Arlene made an interested humming noise. "That's quite interesting!" she commented as she finally finished her drink and folded her hands in her lap. "So any sort of energy? Like if I were to simply touch you would that add to your store? Or must it be of a certain velocity and force?" she wondered, thinking about all the students he must have to deal with on a daily basis. No wonder he was a security guard, he was more or less built for it. "What if you hit yourself? Can you add to yourself or is it nullifying?"

She did allow for a twitter to escape when he mentioned retrocogs making people nervous. "Well, I certainly can't blame them. It's dangerous to let someone into your past sometimes; but honestly, of the two...between people or objects sometimes it's worse with objects. They remember things, what happened around, what happened to them. It can be quite distressing, touching a painting and watching everything that happened around it over the last however many years. What I wouldn’t give to visit a few art museums in Europe and have free reign to just look at all of them. Though I suppose by ‘look’ I really mean ‘pry’,” she sighed.

The waiter approached again with a small plate of fresh vegetables and a few fruits for her and a small plate of assorted meats and cheeses for Vincent. She thanked the waiter before politely requesting another drink for herself and another for the security guard once he’d finished. She took a small fork and speared a tiny wedge of cucumber before chewing it and swallowing. She never talked with her mouth full. “What sort of hobbies do you have?” she asked curiously.

[Vincent Romanov]

Vincent didn't mind the questions Arlene was asking about his ability. He was as equally curious about her skills as well. Talking about his meta ability had never made Vincent uncomfortable although he found it hard to put into words just how his ability worked. He didn't have to make any sort of real conscious effort to use his ability, it was passive. The only time he needed to focus was in converting energy into whatever form he needed. With increased strength came the need to be aware of just how much effort he put into his movements or touch. With enough stored energy, Vincent could lift cars over his head or crush bone with the slightest effort. Having such an abundance of strength seemed like it would be nice to have, but sometimes it was more of a burden. Vincent had enough training with his ability though, that he had a very strong mastery over it. Still, sometimes it weighed heavy on him.

Looking over the food before him, Vincent tried to group his thoughts together well enough to best explain his albility to Arlene. He understood his limits and prowess well enough, but having to put that understanding into a coherent explanation wasn't very easy. With a slow deep sigh, Vincent tried to explain, "Well, any physical force directed directly against me is absorbed as well as any electrical. It doesn't matter the amount of force or voltage of electricity. I can't take a small amount and amplify it though, I can only use as much energy as I have stored. My body has limits though, just like any battery or capacitor. Too much kinetic energy and my body overloads. If that happens I could have a heart attack or just pass out, it depends on a variety of things. One thing that happens though is that when I overload, all that energy comes crashing out, sort of like a grenade," he said, squinting his eyes a little as he tried to correctly describe how his ability worked, "As far as it goes for hitting myself, I can only add so much energy to myself. After a certain point, that energy begins to be exerted with each effort I make to strike myself, only to be added back upon the hit. So in a way, its a bit of both of adding and nullifying," he added clearing his throat now.

Vincent began to help himself to the small assortment of food before him, enjoying his drink as well. Vincent mused over Arlene's ability a moment, thinking it could prove useful to law enforcement. Missing persons cases might be solved faster if someone like Arlene could see just what happened prior to someone's disappearance just by touching something that was in the same room or car with said missing person. Vincent made a mental note to ask Arlene if she had ever used her ability in that manner before after Arlene asked Vincent what his hobbies were. Something which made him chuckle a bit as he sure she was going to be disappointed by just how boring he was.

Clearing his throat again, Vincent smiled, "I'm not very interesting I'm afraid. Not many hobbies. I enjoy boxing though if that counts for anything, even if there isn't anyone who can really offer me any sort of challenge. So, I guess you could say I like to train other people to box. I volunteer down at the youth club on weekends, trying to give something to the kids here in town to focus on instead of letting them be tempted with whatever the streets has to throw at them," he said, settling himself more comfortably in his chair. "What about you? What do you do for fun around here?"

[Arlene Baines]

Arlene listened with avid interest as Vincent explained his power to her, nodding and humming in understanding when appropriate. When he finished she sat back a bit more and hummed thoughtfully. "That sounds quite interesting." she added finally because it was. She hadn't realized that he could also utilize electric power and found that fascinating in itself. When he switched to his hobbies she smiled and sampled some of the food on the plate slightly in the front of her. "Not to sound patronizing but it's really nice that you've found a way to help your community," she said truthfully. She thought boxing was a frightfully violent way to entertain oneself but was also well-aware that not everyone shared that opinion and she was nothing if not a polite conversationalist. Despite her thoughts on boxing as being violent she did agree that with proper training and supervision, an activity like that could very well entice students to channel their energy properly without harming other's needlessly.

"Me?" she asked a bit in surprise. "Well I enjoy reading and art of course, classical music though I don't play any instruments but i really love games!" she said with a big smile. "I love playing video games and putting together puzzles and I still might play card games here and there but not much anymore," she blushed a little. "I like the challenge that games present, I can be a little competitive when the mood strikes me and I like winning so...games were something I could get into fairly easily..." she laughed as she habitually reached to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ears...except none of her hairs were out of place and the motion was revealed for what it was, a sign of nervousness and uncertainty. Arlene loved talking about games and her hobby of collecting but it was hard sometimes to be enthusiastic when more than half the time people tended to give you strange looks.

[Vincent Romanov]

It had been a while since Vincent had really enjoyed himself like this and for once he wasn't worrying about what was going on back at Hammel while he was away. Arlene made great conversation despite her more formal personality. She handled herself quite different from Vincent, much more elegantly and with such precision. Her words were methodical and carefully chosen and Vincent had noticed the way Arlene took in every word he said, looking for meaning in his statements. Not many people would have noticed things like this, but Vincent wasn't exaxtly your normal sort of guy. He had been trained to notice things about people, nothing on par with a behavioral analyst though. It was a soldier's instincts and training to find the chink in the armor of those around him. Vincent couldn't turn something like that off, it was just a part of him now.

Vincent caught the slight nervous movement Arlene made of brushing her hair behind her ear, even though it was already in perfect place. A common act with most people when they were nervous. Vincent smiled and rubbed his chin, feeling the slight stubble from where he hadn't shaved today. "I take it you don't get many moments like this," he said still smiling, "Just sitting around, having a few drinks and some food with a friend. It's your body language. You keep betraying yourself," he finished, taking a slow drink of his beer once he was finished.

[Arlene Baines]

Arlene blushed and managed a sharp, though strained giggle. "Ah, it shows..." she sighed. “I worked and studied a lot growing up and I didn't quite make time for other people until I was older. The only problem is that once I became older I discovered that I didn't really have anyone my age to do all these things with. If I didn't want to go somewhere with friends and colleagues of my parents I usually ended up staying home. I didn't feel lonely of course, my sister and her family lived nearby so I watched my nephew often, we're quite close," she smiled. "I suspect he might be coming to Hammel soon," she shared. "It's been nice speaking with you though; I haven't really enjoyed a drink in quite some time since I've mostly been on my own,” she grinned.

“You must have a lot of people to socialize with!” she said then, beaming. How could Vince not have many friends? He was polite and she thought he was quiet interesting.