2012-12-27 The Information Pump

The holiday season is winding down. Christmas decorations have started to come down, the kettle-ringers have all packed up and gone home, and that holiday cheer that people have leading up to the 25th is starting to evaporate. And that's probably why what started as a fender-bender is quickly escalating as two men are getting in each other's face. They haven't started throwing blows, but they have gathered a crowd. So focused on the potential scrap, people don't notice the four-foot tall creature until it leaps from the back of the crowd to land on one of the crumpled cars. It has large, luminous yellow eyes and thin, enlongated limbs. Fangs and horns and bat-like wings, the creature is decidedly demonic. It's clutching something close to it's chest, large clawed hands hinding whatever it is as it spreads its wings and hisses at the two men. The crow starts to shout and scramble backwards and away, while the two men break off the argumet to stare at the demon.

Wally West is in the area getting ready to buy books for next semester. He's part of the crowd watching the demon, buat as the others start to scramble away, he looks oddly transfixed and not scared at all. He just stands there, staring, just like the other two earlier arguers.

The demon starts to take a few meanacing steps towards the two men, who start to backpedal away. You don't loose your mancard from backing down from a demon, even if it's only four feet tall. It seems to be hissing something, like it's talking, but it's not in any language that Wally knows. As one of the men starts to turn to run, the demon starts to leap after him and there's a flare of light. A circle of light opens and a white-clad Magik drops out of the bottom of it, landing on the demon in a crouch. The demon drops its' prize, the container skidding across the asphault towards Wally.

Wally bends at the knee, reaches down, and stops the container. He's about ready to call out Magik's name, but that's totes not cool given that he's maskless at the moment. Play it cool, Walls, play it cool. "Magik, my hero," he says flatly. "What's this?"

The container is cold to the touch and, peeling back the bag it's in Wally discovers that the demon had made off with... someone's ice cream. Butter pecan, to be precise. Magik rises to her feet, still standing on the demon whose eyes are fixated on the quart container in Wally's hands, long arms reaching for it as it squirms, making Magik rise up and down like she's surfing some kind of wave. Wally's greeting has her turning that chill blue gaze his way. Most people don't remember her and his flat tone has her arching a brow. "I'm betting it's ice cream."

"It is. Great flavor too. Course, I kind of like them all." Wally approaches, holding the spoils of victory out towards Magik. "I like Cookie Dough best, but butter pecan is up there, you know?"

Illyana puts one booted foot on the demon's head and uses it to rap the thing's head against the ground to make it quiet down, saying something sharp in that hissing tounge. The demon's arms curl back around its head, but makes no move to dislodge Magik or her foot. It's wings droop, quivering a bit. Magik leans forward a bit to accept the ice cream, looking from it to the demon and sighs, shaking her head. "You just couldn't wait, could you?" Then she turns back to Wally, a smirk touching her lips. "Hard to go wrong with ice cream." She agrees. "I'm more cookies and cream than cookie dough." She hefts the container. "Thanks." Some of the crowd lingers because hey, costumed sort and a demon, but most of those that had been standing around have gone back to their regularly scheduled programming.

"No problem," Wally responds as he turns to look at the demon. It's a mixture of confusion and wonder--that look on his face. He goes down on a knee, inspecting. "What is it? I've never seen anything like it."

Magik finally steps off of the demon to the ground. As Wally leans down the demon's attention is pulled from the ice cream Illyana's holding to fix on Wally'. Glowing eyes narrow on him and a growl trickles up out of its throat. It's hands flex, and claws scraaaaaape against asphault, carving furrows into it. "Hey." Magik says, nudging the demon with a toe. Which stops the growling but not the glaring. "Eh. It's a demon. Careful. He bites." The shape is still humanoid, but much more gaunt, with too-long limbs that seem to bend the wrong ways as easily as the right.

Wally continues to be mesmerized, but he goes up to his feet at Magik's warning and takes a half step back. "Demon huh? Bites? Likes more than ice cream, you mean." His freckled nose wrinkles.

Another circle of light opens to the side, and Magik tosses the ice cream through it. The demon is off like a shot through the circle and its prize and the circle winks out after the demon is through. "Yeaaaah. Really, I'm lucky they've got such a jones for ice cream." So she doesn't have to worry so much about them making off with someone's baby when they get loose.

Wally watches the beast leave and finds himself a bit speechless. "You'll have to excuse me. Not everyday that you get to meet a real life superhero. I'm not sure what to say." Wally's hands do awkward things as he talks and finally they slowly lower to his sides.

Magik's brows rise a bit and then she just gives a soft chuckle and shakes her head, tone wry. "I'm not much of a hero kid." She extends a gloved hand out to him. "Magik." Even though he already apparently knows her name. "Next time? You uh, might not wanna get so close to a demon. They're really not very cuddly."

Wally shakes her hand vigorously, and holds it a bit too long. "You're plenty heroish. I read the blogs. I keep up with the Indie Superheroes. You're name is Magik. You used to roll with the Titans. And..." He tilts his head, "You beat down demons....That last part I just added."

"Eh. I don't know if 'beat down' is accurate. It's more like herding cats." Magik says. She seems a little amused and maybe weirded out that Wally knows who she is in anything more than a passing capacity.

"Gotchya," Wally says in response. For a second he almost lets his own amusement break through and shine, but he's in character now. Someday this will be really funny, maybe. "So, like. What's it like being a superhero?"

Why isn't her brothere here to do the whole Shining Face of Mutant Heroes bit?? Magik looks briefly like she might just find an excuse to slide out. It's in the way her gaze sliiiides off to the side and her stance shifts. "Uh, well, it's like wearing a target. All the time." Maybe that's why she's got the oh-shoot-me-now outfit on. "And you end up having to make a lot of hard decisions."

"I bet you have a hard time picking between all the other superheroes. The gossip pages said you went on a date recently with a superhero. Was that true? Do you guys like go out and date and stuff?" Wally is trying so hard not to break cover now. "Is it like a club or something?"

Magik grimaces a bit as the dreaded D word comes up. She opens her mouth to say something, but nothing in her head sounds like anything that should be said out loud. "I know a bunch of superhero sorts that date. But I think it's just more complicated than it is for most folks." Avoiding the question? Hell yes. "There are some teams? But uh, no clubs that I know of."

Wally wrinkles his nose again and shakes his head, "So it wasn't a date? I knew it. Quite frankly you're probably too good for that guy. What was his name again? Kid something? Really, you shouldn't be dating anyone with Kid in their name anyways, am I right?"

Magik lifts her arms, palms facing out in a surrender sign. "Hey, I'm not gonna judge what anyone picks as their name, be it Kid Flash or Superboy. They're still putting themselves on the line to try to help folks out." Then she smirks a bit. "But you're right, I shouldn't be dating anyone." At all.

"I didn't say anyone. Why shouldn't you be dating anyone?" Wally's eyes grow really big as if just understanding something gargantuan. "Oh! I get it. You're a /nun/. I dig it. Defeating demons. Can't date."

This is Magik's face meeting her gloved hand. Facepalm. "No. I'm not a nun." She's so very far from a nun! But she doesn't really want to go telling random strangers that apparently blog about superheroes that she's a demon. "But no. I don't date."

"Don't like guys? That's unfortunate. You're a pretty gal." Wally shrugs his shoulders as if to say it's such a waste.

Now Magik's a little flustered. "No, I'm not gay. Which would be fine. My brother's gay and that's great. I just..." She points off in a random direction. "I should get going. It was nice to meet you..."

"Yeah dude. Nice to meet you too. Wait, would..." Wally scrounges for a pen, "Would you give me your autograph?"

Magik gives another slow blink. Because no one asks her for her autograph. Of course, she doesn't normally stick around long enough for anyone to ask for it. "Uhm.. " She chuckles and shakes her head. "Sure. You never did tell me your name." If he gives it to her, she scrawls out 'To Wally, Magik' for him in a fluid, loopy sort of script. Belasco was old. He had a thing for penmanship.

"Make it out to Wally. Wally West," the young man says ecstatic. "People are totes never gonna believe that I met a real life superchick. Hold up." Wally reaches into his pants and pulls out a cameraphone, leaning in and taking a self-shot of he and half of Illyana's face. "Evidence."

Illyana chuckles and shakes her head. Then she leans in and kisses his cheek before stepping back and away. "Use it wisely." She gives him a wink and then there's one of those circles of her light and poof. She's gone.

Wally West chuckles. "Heh. Gotchya."