❧ 010 ❧ Video, laptop webcam

[dominateartimus]

[Normally Xander doesn't do video posts for the network, with the exception of showing off his shadow mimicry. This time around, the camera isn't pointed at himself but a kitchen counter filled with several sweet and savory baked goods made of kneaded dough. These weren't any left overs from the party that Kotetsu hosted since he didn't attend.]

I made a lot more than I intended. [The image tilts slightly to the side, as if it was knocked off balanced for some reason. A sigh and a meow is heard before the visual is back to it's original position.] There's a chance I won't be able to eat all of this in the next few days. So... I'm offering to -- [A brief pause, he's torn if he should charge a small sum for it or not.] -- share.

Limited to those who live in Locke, sorry.

Comments

[saviorsoul]

I guess that's kinda more like a dog. I haven't gotten to spend much time around either.

[dominateartimus]

It'll change in time.

[There's sound of him stacking containers.]

Anyway, I'm heading off now.

[saviorsoul]

I hope so.

Uh are you gonna contact people again? When you decide where you're gonna give stuff out?

[dominateartimus]

Yes.

[He's already on his way to the place in mind, so, he says what park he's going to.]

[saviorsoul]

[ There are no words for how excited Alexi is about free sweets. No words! So excited that he's even dismissing his usual anxieties about meeting new people, as he quickly jumps off the Network to write down the location and bring up some directions. Secretly, he also wishes Xander would bring his cat, but for now, he'll settle for goodies. Should he be worried about meeting some random Numbered stranger? Probably. But he's also still pretty high on his excitement about recently joining this exclusive club anyway, even with his uncertainty as to whether he truly belongs. ]

[dominateartimus]

[Xander wasn't exactly eager to be doing this, but this was his own fault for making an abundance of baked goods while stressed out. So, he would deal with whomever decided to show up at the park, hopefully.

He was dressed decently, a black & white scarf around his neck and holding on to a several plastic bags. His blue eyes were glancing around for anyone who expressed interest from his post on the network.]

action;

[saviorsoul]

[ Alexi shows up at the park maybe a little late since his sense of directions could be better. It occurs to him as he heads into it, still checking his phone to make sure he didn't get lost for the third time, that he never really got a good visual of his dessert benefactor. Then again, how many people are likely to standing around with a bunch of pastries?

He glances up from his directions to check around the park and spies Xander fairly quickly. He figures either the guy is here for some sort of picnic or he's probably the person who made the post, especially with the way he seems to be looking around. But how to get his attention? It's not like they exchanged names. He didn't even get the names of the cats. He scratches at the back of his neck. He's not great at randomly approaching people, even when he knows their name. This is a whole new level of awkward. ]

[dominateartimus]

[That was fine if Alexi was late, since Xander would occasionally glance down at his phone and check if anyone else had responded to his post. Then again, it was kind of his fault for not assigning a meeting spot within the park or giving any details about who to look for.

With a sigh, he moves to find a picnic table and places the bags on top. He definitely spotted someone staring his way, probably intimidated by meeting a stranger. It probably didn't help that he appeared to be rather off-putting at times. Might as well make the first move by raising his hand in greeting.]

...Hey.

[saviorsoul]

[ He looks up a bit, hesitantly. ]

The guy with the cats?

[dominateartimus]

Yeah. I am.

[He nods and his fingers twitch slightly. As much as a cigarette sounds good right now, he'll resist for the time being. Just to be polite.]

[saviorsoul]

[ Alexi only sort of catches the finger-twitch and only because he's focusing on Xander so intently right now. He wonders if it has something to do with meeting a Numbered in person. Then again, a lot more Numbered than him had probably done that by now. He turns his attention to the picnic table of sweets and gives a small smile. ]

It's pretty cool of you to share with everyone. What's the selection?

[dominateartimus]

[It was only a restless habit that happened when he was talking to others, except the last time that happened he accidentally conjured a flame. So, he tries to be mindful of it.

At the question about the baked goods, he moves to pull out a few containers, revealing the various sweet and savory items.]

Various pastries, rolls, pretzels, doughnuts, miniature pies... All baked.

[saviorsoul]

[ Alexi's gaze rolls over all the options, growing a bit wider. ]

Oh wow, they look even better in person. Especially the pies. You really don't want anything for 'em?

[dominateartimus]

Thanks. If you want to pay or not, either is fine.

[He shrugs slightly before balling up the plastic bags and stashes them in to his pocket.]

[saviorsoul]

[ Well, he has some money. Like 10 bucks or something. So that's what he's holding out as he starts gathering up pies. Delicious pies. ]

I think I'll just take a few of these guys.

[dominateartimus]

[He wasn't expecting to raise his head to a bundle of bills, so he blinks his blue eyes a few times before accepting it.]

All right.

[After taking a moment to stash the money in to his wallet, he watches Alexi gather the pies. Damn, he should have brought some extra containers.]

Hang on... You can take the container too. Just let me move some of the extra to another one.

[Or swap it with another pie.]

[saviorsoul]

[ Well, he's been raised to be super obedient and grateful. Most of the time. And he does pause to let Xander rearrange some things so that he can situate his pie collection properly. ]

How many others are going to pick something up?

[dominateartimus]

[Xander doesn't take very long with swapping the items and closes both containers with a small click of plastic. He couldn't help himself and snap his fingers to indicate he was done as he spoke.]

There you go.

[There was a momentary pause from him at the question, thinking back to who replied on his post. He was still snapping his fingers, which was sort of helping before a flame appeared on his finger tips.]

I'm not sure. Probably a couple more.

[Then he notices the flame and quickly extinguishes it with his other hand with a quick apology.]

[saviorsoul]

[ Yeah, no, Alexi's immediate reaction to that is just to stare intensely, before he even realizes he's doing it. This guy can produce fire? Just by snapping his fingers? No wonder he was so good at baking. He probably looks incredibly stupid right now, standing by the table, holding a container of mini pies and gaping openly. ]

... you just...

[dominateartimus]

[He wasn't surprise to see Alexi staring at him for displaying one of his powers like that. Well, this got slightly awkward.]

Summoned a flame. Before you ask if this is staged, it isn't.

[He moves his hand that didn't summon the flame to check on his phone before pocketing it again.]

[saviorsoul]

[ His response is a bit jumpy since he's just keyed onto the fact that he's been staring and he doesn't want Xander to think he thinks he's weird or anything. Would Xander think that? Or would he already be used to it? He has no idea how long Xander has been Numbered, although Xander's general attitude about things suggests a decent amount. Still, having someone gawk at you would probably be awkward for anyone, no matter how used to it he was. ]

I-I wouldn't ask that... I mean, considering...

[ That Xander is a Numbered, which means they should all have some special ability. But seeing people teleport or pull objects out of thin air is nothing compared to seeing someone actually summon real magic. He wonders if this is what Lucy means when she says that she thinks she should have elemental control over fire.

But back to the subject at hand: ]

Anyway, sorry for staring. I just... It's my first time seeing anyone do something like that. Man, that probably sounds stupid...

[dominateartimus]

[It was a good thing that Xander was a lot more easy going on the newer network members and didn't seem to be too terribly bothered by it all. The last person he showed it to was Arthur in the same park.]

It's fine. Most people would react the same way when they see an ability for the first time.

[saviorsoul]

[ Honestly, Alexi kind of wants to see it again. As much as it surprised him, it was incredibly cool! And it looked like a super useful ability. He shifts his eyes a bit so that he's no longer staring like a dumbass. ]

Have a lot of people seen yours?

[dominateartimus]

On the network, no. [He shakes his head.] In person... quite a few.

[He shifts his weight, trying not to show that he wasn't exactly comfortable with talking about it. This was too public of a setting to discuss such things. Call him paranoid, but he was still kind of wary about people, ever since he was warned that the enemy could be among them.]

[saviorsoul]

[ Alexi isn't smart enough to figure out what Xander's hints mean, but he does get the general idea that this isn't something Xander wants to discuss right now. And really any type of hesitancy from others is enough to make Alexi backtrack quickly from the subject. ]

Mm. Well, thanks again for the pies, Mr. ...

[ He trails off again, remembering that Xander never gave him his name. Maybe he didn't want to give it. MD had been cautious about giving hers. Maybe this is a thing among the Numbered, not giving out information like that. It would make sense if people were now targeting them, like that guy from Vegas had said. ]