Icy Roads (open)

[Kasey Łukaczyński]

Sometimes Kasey wondered why she continued to live in the frozen tundra of a state known as Vermont. She enjoyed the scenic snowy views and all the opportunities for skiing, of course. However, the blonde was less fond of frigidly cold days and icy sidewalks. The latter proved to be much more of a problem for the woman, who had a hard enough time getting around when weather conditions were ideal. Nothing proved to be more of an inconvenience to a girl in a wheelchair than improperly salted sidewalks on a snowy January afternoon. 

Luckily, this hadn't been a problem for Kasey that particular day as she rolled around town running errands. She had gone to the pharmacy, and the post office, and even stopped for lunch at a cafe with a friend - all without incident. She had bundled up before heading out - wearing her puffy white winter coat and a knitted purple hat and scarf. Her hands were a bit cold, as she had to settle for finger-less gloves so she could maintain control of her chair. She was used to it by now, having been confined to her wheelchair, especially in winter months, for years now. 

The woman did have one last stop that afternoon, though, and the slight downhill trip to the bank proved to be one stop too many. As the blonde was rolling down the street, skillfully maneuvering around the few passerbys, her left wheel hit a patch of black ice. Blue-green eyes widened and brakes were thrown on as the chair started sliding. Even though the wheels had stopped turning, the woman had a hard time stopping. That was, until she slowly rolled directly into another person who had clearly seen and been waiting to catch her. 

Rosy cheeks turned an even darker shade of crimson as Kasey regained her composure muttering, "Oh god, I'm sorry. So sorry..." she stated, apologizing over and over as she rolled her chair backward from the person whom she used as a human landing-pad, not even looking up straight away, completely mortified. 

[Felix Arnaud]

Felix was having an unusually good day. He had woken up early, and despite a throbbing head courteous of the previous night's drinking, prepared a generous breakfast with representatives from each of the major food groups, just like Sesame Street and the cereal boxes said you were supposed to. He had washed the dishes as he used them, and cleaned the kitchen. The momentum had picked up, and before he knew it the whole house was, if not clean, at least tidy. Bills were organized and checks written, books read by the heater, front porches shoveled, and cats taunted with dangling toys. He had even cooked again for lunch, much to his own surprise.

All in all, it was one of those rare days where colors seemed to be more vivid and spirits more cheerful for absolutely no reason, and the young man figured that it would be better not to spend it all inside. Sure, it was cold, but considering his geographical origins he had an unusual affinity for the northern weather, and in any case the little town was beautiful in any weather. He gathered his bills, stuffing them into one of the big pockets in his long canvas trenchcoat. The garment was a little ridiculous, but it was warm and weatherproof, so he kept wearing it. A patronizing "g'bye, mee-new" to Gonzo and he was out the door.

A couple of hours of leisurely walking later, Felix had dropped off all the bills he could in town, and stopped by the post office to mail off the rest. He had miscalculated only a little bit in supposing that the streets might not be so busy; there were enough people around that he had to actually pay attention to the street more than five feet ahead of him so as not to run into anyone.

That meant he actually spotted the woman sliding down the ice towards him, and in enough time to corral his clumsy body to do something other than step out of the way. Felix held out a hand, grabbing the bar of the wheelchair under one arm, and holding out a foot to stop its front wheel the way a wedge might stop a door. There hadn't been much momentum involved, and the foot thing was probably unnecessary, but the brunet figured it was better safe than sorry.

"Oh god, I'm sorry. So sorry..."

Felix gave the woman a smile. It wasn't fake per se, he really was in a good mood, but the purpose of the smile was mostly to put her at ease--assuming she ever looked up and didn't just melt into the ground where she was. Though he had to admit, the blush was more than a little cute, and he had to fight down some additional redness from his own face as he realized it.

"Don't worry 'bout it, happens to the best of us." Even to Felix's more comprehensive sense of sight, the woman didn't seem to have hurt anything but her ego; still, he figured it didn't hurt to ask. "Are ya alright? Do ya need any help?"

[Kasey Łukaczyński]

Kasey finally looked up at the man she nearly ran over, a weak smile on her face as he tried to make her feel better about the situation. "Really? I don't see anyone else hydroplaning down 3rd street," was Kasey's response to the man's suggestion that it happens to the best of them. Sure, people slipped on ice all the time. But the most damage they could do was to themselves. Kasey, on the other hand, was more likely to commit a hit-and-run with the only damage being her pride. Her tone wasn't all that upset, though; perhaps a bit frustrated. She was mostly mocking, however, always trying to find the bit of comedy in her struggles. She usually succeed.

"I'm fine, thank you," Kasey promised, finally catching her breath from the moment that shock knocked it out of her. She half smiled, and attempted to back her wheelchair up so she could continued on her route, but found that the wheels only slid in place, the seat beginning to rotate on its own accord. "Uhmm..." she started with a small chuckle. "Actually... if you could help me off the ice? That would be... just great," the woman asked, clearly not the most keen on asking for help. But it seemed to be her only option right now. She was basically stranded on a large patch of unforgiving ice. And if the man didn't help her, she'd have to either wait until the chair slid away on its own, or try and walk off with the help of her crutches - and neither option seemed that attractive.

"Are you ok? I don't even know if I hit you, or how hard," Kasey finally asked, realizing that she didn't even take a moment to see if her victim was ok. The woman was so keen on looking out for herself in these conditions that sometimes she forgot that she could manage to harm others in the process - always unintentionally, but still very real.

[Felix Arnaud]

"Really? I don't see anyone else hydroplaning down 3rd street"

Felix winced a little, though he tried to hide it as best he could; maybe his choice of words hadn't been ideal. His good mood had distracted him from the self-reflection that usually preceded his speech, and now that it had been reengaged, he was more than a little worried about offending the wheelchair-bound woman. He couldn't remember if you were supposed to be more sensitive about the topic, or cavalier, or what. He wasn't keen on offending a total stranger, not when his day had been going so well up to this point. At least she was okay; he had been more or less certain he had stopped her harmlessly enough, but it never hurt to be sure.

"Actually... if you could help me off the ice? That would be... just great"

"Oh, yeah, of course." The brunet walked around to the back of the wheelchair and grabbed the handles, examining the ground below them. It was definitely frozen, several yards in either direction. No wonder his unintentional assailant had started sliding when she hit that slope; it was a wonder there weren't more people slipping. "I guess you were headed this way? Or didja already pass where ya wanted to go?

"Are you ok? I don't even know if I hit you, or how hard."

Felix smiled, not realizing (as usual) that the stranger probably couldn't see him as he stood behind her. "You rolled on my foot at almost a whole mile per hour, so I think it's flat now, but other than that I'm fine." Humor seemed appropriate; maybe he could redeem his apparent verbal misstep.

[Kasey Łukaczyński]

Kasey did appreciate the help, and while her originally cynical tone may have not suggested such, she realized that she should be more thankful for the aid. Even if she wished she didn't need it. The man she ran into was her good Samaritan for the day. And she decided she'd just have to accept it for the few moments it took for him to push her off the ice.

"I'm glad that it was a slow collision. I'd hate to find out I had cut your toes off," Kasey joked with a small smirk as the man grabbed a hold of the chair and begun to push her in the direction she had been originally traveling. "I don't have insurance on this thing," the woman continued, hoping that her original tone was forgotten.

"Yeah I was actually headed just over to the.... bank," Kasey noted, when the man asked if they were headed in the right direction. They were... and the bank was honestly just past the large patch of ice. But Kasey's voice fell when they reached the steps, because she found that the bank hadn't quite gotten to shoveling their handicap ramp just yet. Or if they had, a fresh layer of snow had already covered their previous work. Kasey put her face in her hands for a moment. "I can't win today," she muttered to herself, trying to reason in her head how she'd get around this. There were only four steps up to the bank... maybe she'd be able to hobble her way up on her crutches. "I hate the winter sometimes."

[Felix Arnaud]

"I'm glad that it was a slow collision. I'd hate to find out I had cut your toes off. I don't have insurance on this thing."

"That's no good, whatcha gonna do if ya get pulled over?" Felix retorted. "I didn't see any taillight come on when you were tryin' to break, a cop could be just around the corner." He couldn't help but feel a little relived at the woman's joke; apparently if his remark had offended her, she was at least willing to overlook it for however long it took him to help her out of this predicament. Which, he supposed, was more or less within the realm of common courtesy, but she could have simply clammed up instead, so he was willing to be optimistic.

"Yeah I was actually headed just over to the.... bank."

The brunet had neglected his eyes again, watching the ground with his meta-senses, and it wasn't until the pause in the stranger's speech that he looked forward again. They had just gotten off the sheet of ice that had caused her to start sliding in the first place, and so his work was nominally done, but it was clear what the blonde was upset about--the ramp she would have otherwise been able to use was covered in snow. Probably not a big deal for him, even in the treadless old Chucks he was wearing, but he'd bet dollars to donuts it would be the next best thing to impassable for her wheelchair.

"I hate the winter sometimes."

Felix briefly extended his senses, and found that if there were ice on the ramp, he couldn't feel it; his own traction wouldn't be an issue. And he really didn't have anything else to do today; hell, the only reason he had been around to catch this stranger was that he had nothing that needed doing.

"So, will yer chair clear that bit'a snow?" he asked tentatively. The meta didn't mean to offend, but at the same time he had limits as well, and even if they weren't as absolute, he knew a little about having to come to terms with them. "It ain't frozen under there, I don't mind just pushin' ya to the door." And he hoped she didn't ask how he knew; the words had just come out and he hadn't considered until after the fact that there were people who weren't big fans of metahumans, even here in Pilot Ridge.

[Kasey Łukaczyński]

"Eh, I'll just bat my eyelashes and beg forgiveness. Seduce them with my wit and charm," Kasey suggested, knowing from experience that she got a little more sympathy from cops than even an average woman might. While Kasey would like to admit that she didn't take advantage of people's overly sympathetic nature, but when it got her out of an expensive parking ticket, Kasey really couldn't complain too much. It was hard to be mad at the kindness of strangers, even though it could be very frustrating to feel like no one would allow you to take care of yourself.

It was also frustrating when you wanted to do the things by yourself but couldn't. And all of a sudden it seemed like the stranger's kindness was an obligation. But what choice did the woman have? "You don't have to," Kasey said with a small laugh when the guy offered to push her to the door. "But, I certainly would appreciate it," she admitted, looking over her shoulder with a small, slightly weak smile. Oh how she hated admitting she couldn't do things on her own...

"And... if you could help me back down as well... I'm just dropping off a couple checks," Kasey asked almost tentatively. She felt bad, like she was keeping this guy from something much more important, even though she had not a clue what he was doing, who he was, where he was headed. Kasey always just assumed that everyone else had more important things to do than keep her from a traumatic snow-covered-handicap-ramp related injury.

[Felix Arnaud]

"Eh, I'll just bat my eyelashes and beg forgiveness. Seduce them with my wit and charm,"

"Well, ya seem t'have no lack of either," Felix laughed, "so at the least ya'd have them at a disadvantage." He was enjoying the banter; his habit of trying to keep away from crowds ended up making him too cautious most of the time, and that meant he didn't often get a chance to do this sort of thing. Not that this was the most auspicious meeting, but what could you do?

"And... if you could help me back down as well... I'm just dropping off a couple checks,"

Felix could hear the... apprehension, he supposed? in the woman's voice; he couldn't help but feel that he was patronizing her with his willingness to help. But what else could he do? It seemed much worse just to leave her in the snow and let her deal with it herself. God, but he was bad at knowing what do to in this sort of situation. "Don't worry," the brunet replied, returning her weak smile with one of his own, "only thing yer interruptin' is my aimless wandering 'round the town."

"So," the meta chirped, injecting some cheer into his voice. "I'm Felix. It's nice ta meetcha...?" It was a lame attempt at conversation, but he supposed it was better than nothing for trying to distract from what seemed like the inherent awkwardness of the situation.

[Kasey Łukaczyński]

"As long as I'm really not keeping you from anything," Kasey stated, wanting to be sure that she wasn't distracting from anything important. She could manage alone if she really had to, anyway. The man's help was really just saving her about ten minutes of working her way up the ramp or stairs with her crutches. He was also helping her avoid the risk of falling, which was nice. "I'm Kasey," the woman replied, glad to finally know the good Samaritan's name.

As they reached the top of the ramp, Ksaey bumped the handicap door button with her palm, and took over control of her chair, ignoring the slight numbness her hands immediately felt from the snow stuck on her tires. "Thank you so much," the blonde said as gratefully as she could, "I'll be like... two seconds I promise," she added as she rolled into the bank. She reached the counter, and dug a couple of envelopes out of the bag she had hanging on the back of the chair. She grabbed one of the crutches she kept in there as well, extending it to it's full length, and using it to prop herself up so she could reach the counter. Her legs weren't completely broken yet, and she wasn't about to stop using them if she could help it.

After handing over the checks and receiving her receipt, Kasey lowered herself back into her wheelchair, tucked the crutch back into her bag, and rolled back to the door where she was happy to see the man was awaiting her. "Thank you again," Kasey said before he could even grab a hold of the wheelchair's handles. "If you're really not busy, I'd love to buy you coffee or something in return for all this help..." the woman offered, believing she really owed something to this guy. She was so used to not needing anyone, that when she did need help, she felt like she needed to repay her assistants in whatever way possible.

[Felix Arnaud]

Felix leaned against the interior wall of the bank, closing his eyes as Kasey rolled towards the counter. She had taken control from him rather abruptly, but he could understand that; having to rely on other people was annoying at best. Hell, he felt bad about having to cadge rides from friends whenever he needed to go out of town, and that was a once-in-a-while thing. Even the looks of sympathy whenever he walked into shelves or what have you got frustrating after a while. And that was for something that was more or less invisible; so long as he was careful, no one had to know about it. Needing someone's help to do something like cash a check? He figured that had to sting.

The brunet pushed himself upright as Kasey entered his field of vision again, opening his eyes and once again tamping down on his meta-senses. Running into handrails and poles wasn't a big deal for him at this point, but he didn't want to accidentally push her into something.

"If you're really not busy, I'd love to buy you coffee or something in return for all this help..."

"Uh, sure, sounds nice!" Felix's mouth moved before his brain had even registered what he was saying. This... had not been his game plan. He had really planned to carry out the parable to the end, including the part where he made himself scarce afterwards. Not that he had any objections to the notion per se, but making conversation with strangers was really not his forte, and he was surprised he had done as well as he had.

But hey, the rest of this day had gone pretty well, hadn't it?

The metahuman grabbed onto the chair's handles and started pushing. "The Velvet-Tone's only a coupla' minutes away," he said as he guided the chair down the ramp. "So, ya from around here? I'm a bad judge of these things, but I wouldn't pin ya as a college student."