The Perk, Monday Evening

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie had a thick, paperback copy of The Complete Works of Shakespeare, a collection of Cliffs Notes, and a large, steaming, but untouched cup of coffee.

Someone had a skewed idea of what constituted a fun way to spend the evening.

Comments

[throughaphase]

"Okay, the last part still sucks but hey, one thing at a time," Kitty grinned. "Congratulations."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"Thanks," Allie grinned back. "I'm trying to stay calm about and not do anything too crazy, but there is a part of me that wants to call Portalocity and start booking trips."

[throughaphase]

"Maybe start small," Kitty advised. "First Baltimore, then DC, then the world."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"That's about what I'm thinking," she admitted. "First DC, and then maybe New York or another really big city. Any recommendations?"

[throughaphase]

"I will always rec Chicago," she said immediately. "New York and LA definitely, because even if you end up not liking them you should at least see it." She was also realizing there weren't a lot of places she'd seen that weren't work-related.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"I've been in our version of Chicago. Not a fun place," Allie said, grimacing at the memory. "It was mostly underwater, filled with raiders and ruled over by a vampire named Jackal." Who just so happened to have been sired by the same vampire that turned Allie. It had been one hell of a family reunion.

"LA might be a little too sunny for me."

[throughaphase]

Okay, Kitty would be doing her very best to forget that version of her hometown existed.

"How does it work for you? Can you not be out in it at all?" she asked.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"I can for a little while if I'm completely covered up," she explained. "But it's hard because when the sun rises our bodies react by getting sleepy. When I was first turned I was out cold within minutes of the sun rising. Kanin had me practice forcing myself to stay awake. Now I can usually last two to three hours after sunrise if I stay in the shade."

[throughaphase]

"Yeah, maybe save LA for when it's gloomy till noon, and then add London to your list," she said.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"My list is growing by leaps and bounds. Which isn't a bad thing I guess. I need something to do." It was a really good thing Eric paid her well.

"Have you traveled a lot?"

[throughaphase]

"I've been a lot of places, but it's mostly been for work," Kitty answered. "I've been there, but I didn't really get to see the good stuff, you know?"

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"What kind of work?" Allie asked. "Do you have a worldwide network of bars you manage?"

[throughaphase]

If Derek hadn't just said that thing about knowing how to stay low, Kitty might have just come out with it, but now it felt weird to just say what she did. "I used to travel around with other mutants, helping people," she said. "I'm retired now."

At twenty.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

Allie raised an eyebrow because from little she understood about retirement, it was supposed to happen when you were old. "I bet the nights you have to retape the zombies you rethink retirement."

[throughaphase]

"Nah. They maybe make me rethink college," she countered.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"Is that such a bad thing? I mean it seems like it's the thing everyone does." Someone might have been poking about online and wondering just what would be possible with the papers Eric was getting her.

[throughaphase]

"Not everyone," Kitty told her, and shrugged. "I got halfway through my freshman year and took a break to come here. The problem is, the program I was in was so perfect that I can't find anything comparable around here."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"You can't go back?" What, it seemed like the logical thing to do. Unless Kitty had reasons...

[throughaphase]

"I can. But I kind of like it here right now," she said. "And I'd much rather live less than half a country away from my boyfriend. And I really do love my job. And going back to the exact same thing I was doing before might be kind of going backwards." She paused. "I've put thought into this."

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"So it seems," Allie nodded. "Those all sound like really good reasons to stay."

[throughaphase]

"We'll see what happens," she said with another shrug. "Maybe there's something bigger than college out there for me."

Like saving a bunch of planets, running a school for mutants and training the original X-Men, or something.

[allie-vamp.livejournal.com]

"That's sort of the motto of my life right now." Because when you couldn't get home, waiting and seeing was all you could do. "College might not be in the plans for me, but then again, I never planned on ending up here."