Sunshine, Lolipops, And Rainbows. (Boomers)

[Blackbolt]

Malakai Jackson's time in New York had been enlightening to say the least. From a normal person's perspective, he'd lived, learned, and witnessed the true to form mantra of 'only the strong survive'. That had been his motto bestowed upon him from his early childhood from his own father. A two bit crook to some, but a wise and virtuous, yet troublesome man in the eyes of a child who idolized him like a super hero. Roshard Jackson was a tall man of 6'3, a hard statuesque example of the ruthless heart of the streets of Baltimore. Kai had been known around his neighborhood as "The Son of Ro", Little Ro Ro's big brother, a prodigy, the kind of kid who cleaned up after himself, took care of dishes, washin clothes, and his brother and sister while his mother worked her fingers to the bone. Kai could remember days and nights he barely saw any of his parents, yet when they were together, there was a constant fight, endless turmoil. He'd become desensitized to it, because family was all they had, blood ties and love, no matter how tainted it was.

It could never be the same "love" the streets gave him. The same streets that got his father caught up in the system, locked down practically UNDER the prison for 25 years, his brother, murdered and 6 feet under the Earth. Malakai couldn't shoulder the burden of protecting neither his elder nore his senior, he knew he couldn't take care of the women who emant the most to him. To that end that was what brought him to New York, to become tough, to make it on his own without resorting to drugs, dirty dealings, and thievery. Unfortunately that wasn't how the world worked, no matter where he seemd to go he was bound to the code of the seedy underbelly of society. Kai was crafty, cunning, he could sell water to a well, hustle anyone out of their pocket change, and if it came down to it, he could lay anyone out cold.

That was where the parallels of normal people and Malakai Jackson seperated however. It wasn't that he was a bad seed, or a good man doing the worst of deeds, he could not even be considered a homosapien. Maybe if he'd ever met Eric Lensherr in his lifetime, he would've called himself homo-superior, a metahuman, if he'd met Professor Charles Xavier, he could tell you he was gifted. But as far as he knew, thanks to the media and the cold world he was learning more and more about every day, he was a mutant. A living weapon, and to some, a blemish upon society that had to be marked like cattle and tracked even more so than the average person. Rightfully so. Malakai possessed the ability to generate electricity, not your average walk across the carpet too much and accidentally shock yourself on the door type elctricity, but the kind that could equally cause temporary paralysis, maybe even death from a direct shot of Black Lightning right from his fingertips. He had powers that extended beyond simply harming people, but destroying city blocks, or even short circuiting atms as he generally did and walking away with untold thousands of dollars.

Kai even armed with this information tried his best to stay neutral, but as he sat infront of his television on this morning, watching the News of a disturbance at a Mall not too far from his neighborhood, it was all the same. "The Mutant Menace" it perplexed him in a profound way. His size thirteen feet planted on the wood floors of his apartment. His brow scowled and a cigarette wavering smoke here and there all the while he exhaled the poisonous treat from his lungs. What's a man to do in a world in which he's judged by the content of his character and not the color of his skin? What could he do if he wasn't even of the same real race? The question plagued him and sat as visible on his face as the moon in the sky on this night. He'd practically slept the day away, but the world continued on with the same questions with hidden answers. Kai raised his left hand, looking at his fingertips as electric currents rolled across them and down around his palm. He remembered when the tingling feeling was so foreign.

He remembered what it was like, stuffing his hands in his pockets, doing anything not to clap them together, to not see the flash of his power, to contain the super charged bio-electricity that coursed through him. Now it was second nature to him togather his loose change simply by concentrating and drawing it to him, to power his cellphone with the same energy. Even then, he didn't feel like he was living, aside from living a lie. There was a part of him that wanted to step outside into the streets of New York, to allow it to channel all around his body, to simply demolish a car when he was angry, to tazer anyone who tried to harm him, to amybe even protect the ones he loved with such a great power. But at what cost? Being labeled and registered? As what, a freak, an outsider, an alien from another planet? Malakai rubbed his forehead slowly and shook the thought. He'd been thinking too much, even more so than when his brother died, he needed to clear his mind.

With that in mind, Malakai put hsi cigarette out, throwing his dark black hoodie over his white tank top, slipping on a pair of baggy jeans that sagged just over his red and black checkered boxers. He magnetically drew a white gold chain from across the room and placed it around his neck. The Necklace itself had a jesus piece sitting at the end, a momento of his departed brother. He'd retrieved it from the same thungs who'd murdered his sibling in cold blood straight from his dead body, laid out frying on the ground. At times Kai was a heartless, remorseless murdering bastard, if ti came down to it. It was the mentality that had been engrained into his being from day one. Reaching into a drawer next to his bed, Kai took out his ipod and plugged his earphones in.

The sweet blues tune that rang in his ears brought a slow smile to his face as he paced down the streets, almost an extension of his unwavering thoughts, placing a certain undeniable truth, a clarity over them. That no matter what happened, he would be strong, he wouldn't back down from anything in the world. His biggest fear wa slosing his little brother, and he'd lost that. In essense his true fear was pain, feeling pain and losing love, and to feel that pain, yet still have the love of his family and love for himself. That's all that mattered to him, it's all he needed to keep going in this cold world. There on the mean streets of New York, walking step for step until he came to his destination. He was running a little low on funds from several months ago, the last time he'd hit an atm. He was wise enough to have restraint, only to spend what he needed to make it, but never to frequent, and steal frome very atm in New York. Yet now was the time once again to make ends meet, maybe he could find a way to double whatever the machine dispensed. He was saying a quiet hail mary since it wasn't a given that simply by zapping the machine it would spit out money. Of course if he finessed it just right, the machine would simply go haywire and give him what he needed, but if he was too forceful, he'd simply make a mess and draw attention to himself. That was self taught control, yet without a tutor, without any guidance, even that was a crap shoot, trial and error.

Kai drew close to the atm, looking around as the streets were eerily silent on this night, especially for a city that never sleeps. Casually he placed his finger on the console, a flick of electricity curling around his finger instantly, and with a 'Zzzskcchiizcht' the money dispenser buzzed and hummed for a second before beeping several times not unlike a slot machine. Malakai had hit the jackpot again, a bright smile crossing his face as the hundreds, fifties, twenties, fives, and one dollar bills came out ina thick stack that he abruptly took, like a thief in the night, stuffing them in his pockets. Content with himself, Kai turned around, his eyes fading from the bright periwinkle that accompanied his powers use and laid eyes on someone standing directly behind him. His breath caught and choked up in his throat for a brief moment, but his mind reacted like a steel trap, quick with an explaination already made up in his mind. Not that he would explain himself to anyone, but seeing something like that was out of the ordinary. There was no telling how this person could react, what with the Friends of Humanity on the prowl looking for a mistake like this, immediately he cursed himself for not paying attention, for being too careless. Yet there was a resolve inside of him that didn't care, the side of him that hungered for confrontation, interaction, another way to stimulate his mind, to play verbal or physical chess right then and there in life. He cast a silent look, a hard 'don't fuck with me' stare, yet spoke no words.

[Tabitha Smith]

The city that never sleeps... That's what this place was nicknamed and tonight, Boom Boom happened to be a part of that population of insomnia plagued individuals. She had spent a couple of the first hours laying there staring at the stained and cracked ceiling of the foreclosed house she was squatting in for the time being; thinking about the events of the last couple of weeks...

The main thing she was thinking about was Greggy-boy. It wasn't just because of his smile dimples, his somewhat preppy look, careless blond hair or not so shabby figure, but his powers. Tabitha hadn't come across many mutants before. If any before the wind powered Gregory. So of course it got seared into her mind some. She was on the fence when it came to deciding on if she would be interested in that sanctuary of his or not. The words "too good to be true" kept ringing in her head and with her life, usually when that happened, it really was too good to be true.

Anyways, why would a place that had guys like him, want someone like her? And they'd probably want to know all sorts of stuff about her. Like who she really was, where she came from, how much trouble she'd been into, who her family was..... No thanks. She didn't feel like giving any of that out. But.... But it'd be kind of nice to be able to sleep in an actual bed and to stay in some place more... well, stable.

She wouldn't have to worry about where she'd be staying at when someone found out that this place was being squatted in.... or actually bought the house. She wouldn't have to worry about possibly muggers or perverts she'd have to bomb the hell out of. She wouldn't have to worry about the cops anymore. Well, Tabby couldn't really say that. She kind of made it her unofficial job to keep the porkies in shape. Someone had to do it.

But what about her "teacher"? Yeah, she hadn't seen much of him.... Actually, she hadn't seen any of him really lately. Figures, right? Someone claims to want to take her under their wing or whatever and then bails. It had been another one of those "too good to be true" moments and she was seeing how that turned out. He probably just felt sorry for her for that short time then the mischievous charm wore off and he found something else to do. That was fine by her.

She didn't need anyone schooling her anyways. She was good enough to pick a decent amount of pockets, and cute enough to get away with it most of the time when she did actually get caught.... That, and when she did get caught, she was a pro at wriggling out of it. Or rather, making a fun explosive yet non-lethal escape. Tabby had actually gotten caught a couple of times just for the fun of it. The excitement of the chase was great and it got rid of that restless feeling for a while.

A restless feeling just like the one that was helping to keep her up right now. Tabitha gave a cross between a groan and a sigh as she turned over onto her side and she formed a couple of BB-sized beads of golden kinetic energy. Counting down in her head, she let them crackle and pop, them giving off small flashes of light as they did so before they were gone.

But what was there really to do at this time of the night? Sure, she had a pocket full of cash from her antics earlier on in the day, but it wasn't really enough to bribe her way into a club or anything... Well, there were a couple of easy solutions to that though, wasn't there... Just because it was night it didn't mean no one was out to nick from... But was she over-doing it?

Nah.

Tabby grinned and hopped up to her feet from the small mass of blankets she'd been laying on. Ruffling her hair then smoothing it straight with her hands, she walked out of the bedroom and through the house until she got to the back door of it. It'd been the easiest to jimmy and she managed to get another lock for it that she had a key for. After locking up "her house", she went out to the streets to see about getting some play money.

Not that she really called it "play money". Alright, so she did at times but that was when she was either really tired or pretending to be a valley girl from California going on vacation to the East Coast or something. Not that she had done that more than once. The whole getting dressed up thing wasn't really for her. It made her feel.... She didn't know, maybe exposed was the word for it? She didn't know. It wasn't exactly "exposed" more like... Well, she felt awkward.

Tabby hadn't had an occasion to dress up or get all pretty for something, really. Growing up in a trailer park and with how her pops treated her, she wasn't ever into getting dolled up. Tabby was more of a tomboy. It was more fun that way anyways. That, and it would have probably snapped her ankles right off if she tried running from the cops after a prank, if she was wearing high heels. She could imagine that all too easily; she'd be running, wouldn't notice the grate on the side walk, the heel would slip in and get caught, then SNAP there would be the sound of one ankle breaking.

It was terrible that the mental image of something like that happening made her start laughing. But she couldn't help it. She just thought of the first time that thought had crossed her mind and it amused her more. Like, in the comics, the heroines would be wearing these ridiculously high class boots or shoes with different kinds of heels, and never once did they show a scene where the heel would break off or the heroines would run across a grate. The off panel spoofs that Tabby made up in her mind amused her more than the comics did. And she doubted she was the only one who imagined such things.

Boom Boom had been on her way to one of the busier areas of that part of town, when something caught her eye. Well, it would have been kind of hard to miss, seeing how money was just spewing out of the ATM and some guy was stuffing it all in his pockets. Sure, she'd caught the tail end of it as she walked out of one of the shortcut alleyways she tended to use time to time, but it was still something that had her standing there for a moment.

He turned. She wondered if he had a gun. She then wondered if he had something worse than a gun with how he looked at her. Was she scared though? Naaaah. Tabby couldn't remember the last time she'd been scared, actually.

Alright, so that was a lie. But it was a while back too. She'd been scared of her father when he got ready to give her the beating of a lifetime when she'd set bombs off in his meatloaf. But he was out of her life now. She'd run away from there and never gone back. Never looked back thinking about going back. She was a free woman now. Free to do what she wanted and to have fun. And boy did she have fun. Her life was more or less carefree now. Well, as carefree as a jobless hobo could have. Hey, it wasn't as bad as it sounded. She actually had a lot of fun this way.

Sure, there were some worries but nothing Boom Boom didn't think she could handle. She'd faced everything that had come her way so far and got out of it with a grin. It hadn't dragged her down or turned her serious either.

"Aw man, you beat me to the punch." She stated, laughing some.

Not really though, she just thought it'd be funny to say right then. Just to see what kind of look might cross his face as a reaction. She didn't worry about him attacking her. Why? Well, she just got lucky sometimes. Anyways, if he tried, she'd figure a way around it. It wouldn't be the first time someone had attacked her and it wouldn't be the last. She placed her hands on her hips and tilted her hips some to the side as she waited for a possible return comment.

Of course, there was a chance he might just make a run for it. Now that would be seriously boring. But then again, if he ran, there was a chance some of that money would come flying out of his pockets and she'd have some to go to the club with. Now she was half tempted to hope he ran, even if she wanted to know what exactly he did to get the money in the first place. Hacking? Jimmying in a right way? Powers?... Since Greggy-boy, she had to wonder about the powers bit. After-all, if there was a sanctuary for mutants, there had to be enough mutants to need to have one.

They've been showing up on the news lately. Mutants caught on film and all that. The FOH had been having a field day giving speeches and such about them. Was it that less and less mutants were hiding, or that there were just more of them gaining their powers or traits or whatever? This wasn't exactly the time to think about that though, was it. Tabby put those thoughts to the side for later. When things were less potentially exciting. Right now, she was paying attention to what money-bags here was going to get up to.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm not gonna go run to the cops unless it's to let the air out of their tires." She commented, her grin sneaking onto her lips and mischief glinting in her eyes.

[Blackbolt]

Kai's stern face was almost immediately and easily unnerved by the words she spoke next, "Aw man, you beat me to the punch." the only thing he could do at that point was chuckle a little bit, it HAD been the funny thing to say, of course there were plenty of other things she could've said, 'What the fuck are you doing to that atm!?' or 'Give me some of that money, OR I'M SNITCHIN!' any of those options would've left the sexy blonde twitching on the ground from a nice tazing, since he had no intentions of parting with any of his money, nore getting into trouble. Even then, he would've had a hard time doing that to a girl like this tallish, blonde, crazy devil may care look in her eye. At first he thought he was imagining things as his dark brown eyes watched her hips sway side to side, his brow scowling slightly as his smile barely left his lips, he shook his head pulled his earphones from his ears thinking to himself, 'Is that a fact?' if this girl was thinking the same thing he'd been thinking, then it could've meant one or two things. Either she had a brilliant little scheme to rob an atm, or she too could've been a mutant, but he shed that thought quickly, having enver properly run into a mutant, he was very unsure what to make of them as a whole. He was almost convinced they didn't exist and he was living through some freak accident or something. "Damn right i did, stacks on deck." Kai answered back with both gusto, and bravado in his voice.

He couldn't hide the fact that he wasn't wary of the girl at all, although just by her tone and stance she seemed like the kind of girl who enjoyed moments like this, maybe even lived by them, of cours ejust running into someone out of the blue was no cause to expect some whirlwind adventure, contrary to that, New York was the kind of place that would take you for a RIDE in that whirlwind and it didnt feel like that much of an adventure. But who could say no to a bubbly blonde looking for a good time, even if she didn't ask, when she said things like, "Hey, don't worry. I'm not gonna go run to the cops unless it's to let the air out of their tires." it just spoke to the roguish heart that beat deep inside of Malakai's chest, a daring smirk crossing his face as he replied. "Heh, it's one thing to do what you want, not givin a shit what anyone thinks or says about it. But to outright defy authority? Now that's ballsy, i like ya style, my name's Malakai, how bout you?" Kai asked her obviously loosening up, but keeping a cautious eye on the girl, he'd pretty much given the impression that he was sold on her, even though he wasn't in the slightest. People tended to say one thing and do another altogether, no matter how straight forward he approached them, so he'd decided a long time ago simply to test people's reactions before giving his own true reflex.

[Tabitha Smith]

"Damn right i did, stacks on deck."

Well, he didn't try to deny what he did. If anything he seemed proud of it. And, he didn't seem to be about to try to make sure she stayed quiet about it either, so that was a good start. Though, did a little part of her want him to have? Yeah, but it was a really really little part of her. It was only out of the fact that she was that bored and restless too. A bored and restless Tabby was usually one that found trouble or just ended up landing into it.

It was almost like she couldn't even help it when it got to a certain point. She was like that cat that'd sit on top of a fence swinging it's tail on the side where the pissed off killer pooch was enclosed behind. The cat knew that there was a chance that one day the big blood thirsty bastard would sneak up and jerk her down, but still kept testing it's luck. Though, Tabitha didn't think she'd learn even if her metephorical tail did get caught one day. She was too used to the same old routine.

That had been one of the things that had her thinking when it came to the whole going to the sanctuary thing. Why she wasn't living in that same place that Greggy-boy had talked about. Because she wasn't sure if she was the right type to be staying out of a place like that. They seemed to keep a low profile. Her, not so much. Unless you called piggy-tag lo profile.

"Heh, it's one thing to do what you want, not givin a shit what anyone thinks or says about it. But to outright defy authority? Now that's ballsy, i like ya style, my name's Malakai, how bout you?"

"Hey, ballsy happens to be hella-fun." She commented with a grin, not giving him her name just yet.

It followed not too long after though, her having taken a split second to decide on which name to give to him for him to use.

"Boom Boom. At least, that's what some people call me. There's Boomer and Firecracker too. So, you've got your pick." She commented with a cheeky smirk.

[Blackbolt]

They said the definition of insanity was continually repeating the same routine expecting different results. However the definition simply didn't stick to Malakai at all, he preferred to think of his life and his actions as one never ending scientific method. For instance, his hypothesis at that very moment was that this blonde was like any other saucy girl wandering the streets at an ungodly hour, strong, confident, and outrageously stubborn. At leas tthat was what crossed his midn first seeing as she was all alone in the heart of New York, an Incredible Hulk's leapfrog away from the slums, seedy and lawless as it was, there she was all alone with no friends. She had to either be crazy, or vigilant enough to look after her own damned self. Kai respected that enough to carry on with the next step in his equation, which was to pick her mind and figure her out. He had no fear of anyone in this world, not since his powers developed, it wasn't rare for him to use them discretely, but he'd also used them subtlely in street brawls, his punches landing with the extra kick of a thousand volts wasn't as much of a dead give away as generating the crackling paralysis, eurine einducing bolts from his hands to subdue an opponent.

For Malakai, this blonde was seemingly no threat, especially not to pilfer his new ill gotten bankroll. For that matter it was almost like an icebreaker that'd drawn the two together out of the blue. Had he been nervous, maybe he would've told the girl to f*** off, to mind her own damn business, 'DON'T TELL ME NUFFIN LADY!' with the raw attitude of the cesspool that was Baltimore. But it was something about embracing who he was, without threatening someone, nore allow them to intimidate him with his actions that lead him to it. It was like dangling a shark infront of a killer whale, a rotting carcass sitting infront of a hungry pack of hyenas. There simply was no end to the temptation of a curvy athletic blonde girl who kept her cool about something like a major, albeit atm, robbery right infront of her eyes. Then again, money talked and bullsh** walked, it didn't slip his mind that that could've been her primary motivation for even speaking.

"Hey, ballsy happens to be hella-fun." she replied to him, Kai's eyes barely flinched however. He'd chosen his words carefully, in his words, Ballsy simply connected the dots of having spunk, moxy, and a mouthpiece. Simply the ability to say one thing, but actions still spoke louder than words in in his book. He wouldn't deny how raw he was if questioned, nore would he shy away from exchanging quips and boisterous loud mouthery, but all of that was simply a game to him, a game he dabbled in like a thief dipped his toes into murder if pushed too far, like a scientist with the best intentions could still create a weapon of mass destruction with the right knowledge. Folding his arms across his chest, Malakai leaned back against the wall next to the slightly smoking atm and cocked his head to the side, all the while his gaze never leaving the girl's facial expressions, taking in her features as he lips curled into a smirk, a cheeky one, the one that was all too familiar for anyone who'd met the girl. He could almost feel her mischieveous aura all over him as she finally gave him a name to attatch to her, "Boom Boom. At least, that's what some people call me. There's Boomer and Firecracker too. So, you've got your pick."

Sure it wasn't a full on smorgousboard of names, how many times could one hear these little nicknames before they started putting the pieces together really? Boom Boom, Boomer, Firecracker, did that mean she was explosive? Maybe she was one of those gun toting psychopaths who ran the streets with FOH, maybe she'd blown the head off of some mutants at one point with a vicious bloodlust? Possibly even a stripper name, the thought drew a small grin to Kai's face as he raised his hand to stroke his goatee, his eyes glowing slightly with wonderment as he eyed the girl and practically sized her up. She didn't seem the type to be offended easily, at least not at this point, he seriously wanted to ask her if it was her stage name and if he could get a private dance, but he thought better of it, choosing to think with his rightful mind. Boomers....that's some deep shit, is that associated with Bang Bang, and Pow Pow, and Boosh, and Kaboomerang? Kai kidded for a moment, his smile growing wider and wider as he mused her nickname outloud, his slender frame pressing forward from the wall, his pockets sliding into his full pockets. He took a few steps forward , seemingly to walk away from the blonde but turned to her diagnal from her position, his dark brown eyes piercing through the faint darkness of the night blessed with the bright moonlight of New York shimmering down to the streets.

"So tell me somethin Boom, how do you get a wild ass nickname like that, from bustin heads, or shootin guns? And then one more thing, why in tha blue hell are you out in the streets at a time like this, and uuuuh.... Kai paused with a wide smirk crossing his face as he turned to face her once more. "....The hell you want stoppin by to watch me do my thing and even mentionin 5.0., am i gonna have to rough you up or is you chill? Cause i don't mind sharin the wealth, but i'm bored as sh*t and i was half ass hopin i'd run into someone as fine as you.......ya know, so a ***** could have some company round this b*tch ya dig? Kai offered in a charismatic tone, though he reserved his excitement. He could already see Ms.Boom Boom was also a cautious observer, but until her intentions were clear, he would keep things just as pedestrian, however he was all for tempting fate to see what the girl had to offer, as far as good times anyhow. Kai was NOT easy to trust anyone, he simply felt it was better to be proactive than to be reactive and pay the price for not being either aggressive, or way too passive.

[Tabitha Smith]

"Boomers....that's some deep shit, is that associated with Bang Bang, and Pow Pow, and Boosh, and Kaboomerang?"

Tabby snerked at that, taking it as a joke but she couldn't resist adding on to it.

"Din't ya know, onomatopoeia names are all th' rage. You should get yourself one, catch up an' all." She teased back before laughing a little.

He seemed like the type that could handle a little joking around both ways rather than being the type that could dish it out but couldn't take it. Now, if she was wrong, that had the potential of really sucking, but she'd manage either way. Tabby had been in and out of trouble enough to feel like she could get through about anything.

"So tell me somethin Boom, how do you get a wild ass nickname like that, from bustin heads, or shootin guns? And then one more thing, why in tha blue hell are you out in the streets at a time like this, and uuuuh.... The hell you want stoppin by to watch me do my thing and even mentionin 5.0., am i gonna have to rough you up or is you chill? Cause i don't mind sharin the wealth, but i'm bored as sh*t and i was half ass hopin i'd run into someone as fine as you.......ya know, so a ***** could have some company round this b*tch ya dig?"

"I was bored, couldn't sleep, and had the sudden urge to seduce an ATM into spitting me out a bunch of play money." She kidded.

The first two were honest, the last one was just her playing around. Though the grin of mischief was on her lips the whole time even if she'd made her way to the wall to lean her shoulder against it. Tabby didn't stand right next to the guy, and she was fully ready to push herself off to run like th' freakin' wind if something crazy came up.

"Well, if you don't mind sharin' then let's go. I was plannin' on going to the club after I picked up a little bribe money to get in. You might not know me but if you did, you'd know that a bored Boomers ain't a good thing." She commented with another one of her smirks.

[Blackbolt]

"Din't ya know, onomatopoeia names are all th' rage. You should get yourself one, catch up an' all." She teased back before laughing a little. Kai smirked himself, it was pretty odd in this word to find a girl who'd even consider such an option for a name. What with the mind of a man drifting to sexual innuendo at the drop of a hat, it would take a mind like Malakai to introduce the aspect of chaos, explosive personalities, and absolute Dynamite. He couldn't explain in his mind how he'd arrived at it, the slim chance, the thought that maybe the mock jokes and uncomfortabele energy of this girl was that of a mutants. Maybe it'd been the mischieveous grin on her face all along, or the statement twice made, The urge to entice an atm into spitting out money, the question was how? It was more and more farfetched with technology that anyone could simply hack an atm, or do what he just did. Fry it to a crisp until it spewed cash everywhere, the question was on the tip of his tongue, it was an intense desire that caused him to clench his money tight in his pockets, and give slight cues in his body language that it was the case, but ultimate taboo for him to speak about.

Afterall, he didn't know this girl, he didn't trust this girl, but she'd impressed him with the same annonimity, the kind of character who'd sooner make up a name like Firecracker than speak her real name into existence as he'd done not two minutes prior. He'd roped himself into the role of the honest, straight forward person in this scenario."You got it like that huh? Must not be your first rodeo, professional bank robber or somethin? I mean, how would you charm an atm, you just give that goofy grin and BOOM, Money, money, yeah yeah? Kai teased as he draw a stack of money from his pockets, what had to be five thousand bucks onhand, his free hand pulling a rubberband to wrap around it before tossing it to his right side at the girl's hand. "Cause you just come off smarter than i anticipated off of the top if you just made ME you're personal...hmmmm ionno, club partner, bodyguard, atm, and insomniac partner in crime."

Kai mused outloud taking a few steps forward and turning to face Boom Boom again, his dark brown eyes narrowing a little, though a sly grin crossed his lips. His face full of unbridled excitement. He couldn't help but hide the wonder and energy in his eyes, sure, he was infact a mobile hermit in life, but even hermits got lonely, craving company, but of those who shared like minded ideas. "You might not know me but if you did, you'd know that a bored Boomers ain't a good thing." Kai's smirk flashed into a bright smile and then a slight laugh at the thought. Malakai was FAR from exciting in that context. The kind of guy who had just as much fun ina raucous club with people wall to wall, as to listening to jazz and simply watching the bright lights of the city. He was content to never have anything, but possess nice things anyway. Life and death didn't matter to him anymore, he was too neutral to care, felt all alone in the world and truly shook good and bad off like nothing. What was being bored or being excited? Looking into the eyes of the blonde and right dead at her smirk, he was starting to remember."Oh boy, well let's find a hole in the wall or somethin Firecracker and maybe you can share exactly what makes you tick.......tock......boom......heh"

Kai spoke with a chuckle as he started up the street. His back turned completely to the girl, he obviously didn't know where she'd lead him too, if she was even going to follow him, or if she'd simply dash off into the night, a mirage, a play on his mind, his whims and a figment of his imagination. Something in his gut told him she was far from finished with him however, he'd fallen right into the realm and scope of Boom Boom anyway, what was the worst thatcould happen anyhow?

[Tabitha Smith]

She knew that her name would bring some innuendo about, and she guessed by the look on his face that yes, he had reached that thought too. She didn't mind, as it hadn't been the first time, and it sure as hell wouldn't be the last. The one positive about it was that because she was so used to it, she wouldn't hold it against him. If she did that, then most people she met would end up in her bad books.

He didn't seem that bad. He actually seemed to be a decent human being. Luckily though he wasn't exactly boring, which sometimes could be a problem when it came to decent people. He amused her a little. Whether it could be more than a little would be up to him, though her thoughts on that were surprisingly more chaotic and less innuendo-laden.

It was better than being called Tabitha anyway. It was a name that some thought didn't suit her, or some just plain laughed at. She was more comfortable with her nicknames, as they reflected her personality far more accurately than Tabitha. It was better that way, because she didn't want people getting heart attacks when sweet little Tabby went and, well, made things go boom-boom.

She was no professional bank-robber, but the thought amused her for a moment. She really could have made a career out of it if she'd wanted. It wasn't like the police would be able to stop her. She caught the money he'd tossed to her, and listened to him talk about how they were partners. Well, wasn't that sweet. She gave him a bit of a smirk, still playing with just enough slack to try to figure him out some more.

He smiled. A lot. He even had plenty of excitement in his eyes. There was an energy to him, as if he was ready to explode. He was bubbly, but not in the ditsy blonde kind of way. She did wonder a little if there was more under the skin than that energy, but what little wondering she did was concluded with the belief that there was more to him than met the eye. Hopefully it was good too.

The energy that came from him was flattering, but she didn't think much more of it than she had already, even when he talked about finding out what made her tick. He was persistent, which was good. It could even be very good; she just hadn't decided yet.

She was surprised when he just turned away though. It showed confidence, and that, like persistence, had its moments. For a few second, she wondered what she should do. Would he turn out to be something more sinister than he had seemed? Or was her gut telling him that he was really not that bad an accurate feeling?

Tabitha was never one to be indecisive, and as such ended up deciding that what the hell, she would follow him anyway. Maybe he'd amuse her some more?

"Hey, wait up!"

[Blackbolt]

[white]"Din't ya know, onomatopoeia names are all th' rage. You should get yourself one, catch up an' all."[/color] The thought ran through his mind, an onomatopoeia name huh? He paused for a moment as she'd caught up to him, a small grin on his face as his eyes turned into a bright periwinkle, a surge of electricity running up his arm until it ignited at his fingertips in a flurry of power. He looked to Boom Boom and then unleashed a bolt of electricity at the nearest fire hydrant in a quick burst causing it to explode skyhigh from it's place and water to rush straight into the air with the furious vigor of the lines that supplied it. A devilish grin crossing his face and a small chuckle of laughter as he said. "Ya know Boom, i ain't no fool, but with a name like yours, you don't get that without there really being somethin behind it. With that said, ionno what you would call me in Onomatopoeia form, but it is what it is...i guess you could call me a mutant who gets on with the powers i got, i don't really know how to use them as great as i could, and i don't particularly have anybody i can share that with, but that's how much i'll trust you at this point and time.....ya know cause i'm bored and shit." Kai said in a dry, ambiguous, sarcasm laden soliloquy.

He didn't quite know why, but he blamed it on that rebel sensibility, the fact that people who put up a front LIKE hers would probably lose their shit to see him, surging with the very energy that coursed inside of him. Though in the form of electricity, shifting from a quick flicker on his thigh, around his chest, forearm, and even raising the very hairs that stood ontop of his head. It was a pure mass of energy contained, flickering from the tips of his fingers. There was a certain level of insecurity that came with it, a responsibility that Malakai reserved in the back of his mind, something that made it a secret. Yet, never quite a secret shame. It wasn't like he had a rat tail peaking out of a trench coat, or had some inhuman growth coming out of his face that was the key to it all. In a way, it made him feel like a God, able to come and go as he pelased, never worrying about any NORMAL human starting trouble with him, to never be afraid of dying, but a healthy fear of seriously hurting someone, or misusing that power. To him however, simply pocketing money on that ability, or maybe even impressing a wild blonde with it was NOT a curse, so much as a blessing.

To that point, he'd felt like they were two boxers, feeling each other out in the first round, trying to see what the other had up their sleeve. Kai just didn't have the patience to wait for the round to end before showing his trumph card. And he surely wasn't going to wait until this chick, whom he'd percieved a chaotic enigma, to get them into a hairy situation before he had to give someone the shock treatment, and THEN exposing it, only to be all alone in the darkenss of the world YET AGAIN. Though it wouldn't be the first time he had to explain that to a girl, his past two women having unusual outages and such in his presence. "So tell me somethin, does the moniker of Boom Boom have to do with somethin like this?" Kai asked with a bright smile, his fist clenching and his currents slowly dying down from random circulation, and his periwinkle eyes slowly fading to a soft brown.