A Third Wheel

[Rampage/Xavier Goodkind]

Month 7, Week 4, Day 3. The Whitney. Semi-Private.

The little scooter looks a bit out of place in the parking lot of the fancy mansion-turned-restaurant, but at least one of the men that dismounts it looks comfortable enough in his neatly pressed suit, for all that it's rather new.

Xavier's expression is rather sullen as he tugs off his bike helmet - a certain paranoid somebody insisted he get one, and if nothing else, it preserves his anonymity when traveling through the city. He's been wearing a lot of hats lately. Really, he's going out with Pierce to a high-class restaurant, normally he'd be ecstatic!

Unfortunately, he's going out with Pierce to meet his boyfriend's boss. The secret alien one, not the one related to being a librarian. Huffing out a petulant breath, he drawls, "I still don't see why I have to."

[Phobia/Pierce Fobster]

“Xavier,” Pierce sighs, as he tugs off his own helmet. Really, it was like talking to a sulking teen this entire evening. “It’s not going to be too long and- hmm.” He stops and eyes Xavier’s hair before getting off his bike and taking a small comb out of his pocket to try and comb it. “Hold still, please.” Such unruly hair! Well, it was a lovely, red curly mess, but how does he even make this look good?

“Please, please behave,” he says quietly. “I need to stay in his favor and it is in your interest to do so as well. You are one of us, and while the Decepticons don’t always look out for their own, it is good to have some connections higher up the ladder.” And potentially keep Xavier out of jail if worse comes to worse.

[Rampage/Xavier Goodkind]

Xavier submits to the attempt to tame his wild curls with a sarcastic, "Yes, mother."

Really, though, he enjoys the attention and it lightens his mood some. He supposes he can try and behave if it matters so much to Pierce. He grumbles in grudging acquiescence, then indulges in one last protest. Once they enter the building he'll put on his charming face. "I don't see why we need the Decepticons anyway. It's not like we're robots. Anymore."

[Phobia/Pierce Fobster]

Pierce falters a bit at that bit he quickly covers it up and finishes combing through Xavier’s hair. “We will probably be robots again soon,” he murmurs softly before continuing with a fond smile, “And even if we never return, your future as a free man is a bit more ensured.”

“Now, in you go,” he says, ushering Xavier towards the utterly grandiose castle of a restaurant. “And remember; behave.” Mother hen? Pierce? Noooo.

[Rampage/Xavier Goodkind]

"Fiiiine," Xavier says, sighing long-sufferingly. He has to admit that Pierce may have a point, even if he's not actually going admit it out loud. Plus, that smile makes him feel warm inside.

Smirking a bit he tries to curl an arm around Pierce's waist as they enter the restaurant. When the maitre d' greets them, Xavier gives the man a charming smile. "We have a reservation with a Mr. Patrick Sydney."

[Rook]

The maitre d's face crinkles ever so slightly as Pierce and Xavier approach. "Of course. Right this way, sirs," he says, leading them back into the lavish restaurant to a private table set back in a corner, far out of the way.

What appears to be an older gentleman in a brown suit and tie is sitting there, waiting for them, pouring himself another glass of wine from the bottle on the table. He does not get up when they approach. "Ah, gentlemen, so good of you to join me," he says in what can only be described as an English drawl. "Please, have a seat."

[Phobia/Pierce Fobster]

Pierce’s face turns a bright red when Xavier curls his arm around his waist, but he doesn’t fuss for once. Xavier is quite lucky they’re in a fancy restaurant, otherwise he’d have the most unbearably awkward and fussy armful of Pierce at the moment.

He gives the maitre d’ a polite nod, noting that way his face crinkled at the sight of them. Worrisome. He thought they’d at least manage not to be too obviously out of place after all that business with suits.

Once they reach Rook’s table, he says a soft, “Good evening, sir,” in greeting as he pulls out a chair for Xavier.

[Rampage/Xavier Goodkind]

Xavier doesn't answer 'Mr. Sydney's' greeting, and as he and Pierce approach the table, his smile gives way to a thoroughly befuddled look. He doesn't seem to notice the seat Pierce has offered him, instead placing a hand on the table and leaning towards Rook, eyes wide and nostrils flaring slightly as if he was smelling something.

But it's not a matter of scent that's bothering him, or sight, or any other of the typical senses humans have. It's just that he can sense this man, in a way that he's never been able to sense anybody that he can remember. The man isn't even experience strong emotions like fear or pain! It's like... like the whole world is two-dimensional, and Rook is the only one he can see in three dimensions. Like everyone is in gray scale, except this one person who is in color.

His brows knit together in confusion and his eyes narrow. He wasn't sure what to expect from Pierce's alien robot boss - and frankly, he still didn't entirely believe it - but this selective boost to his empathy wasn't even on his radar.

[Rook]

Rook smiles at Xavier's change in expression. Poor little ex-crab. Rook doesn't need any fancy extrasensory perception to guess what other people are thinking. Not when they're as obvious as Rampage is being, anyway.

If he detects an emotion from Rook, it's likely a smug sense of satisfaction. The sort of emotion that accompanies the thought 'I used to outrank you, but I gave you a wide berth anyway, because I was afraid of you. I was weak, and you were strong. Now I can break your fragile calcium and carbon bones over my knee without effort.'

Rook continues smiling ever so sweetly as he says "Xavier Goodkind, I presume? How is life treating you?"

[Phobia/Pierce Fobster]

They haven’t even been here for one minute! One minute! And Xavier was already doing this! Really, Pierce hadn’t expected the night to go smoothly in any sense of the word, but he’d expected them to have settled in their chairs at least before anything happened.

“Xavier,” he says, trying to gingerly put his hands on the red head’s shoulders and gently urge him to sit down. What emotions he can feel seeping through the fabric are quite... peculiar, but they were too muddled to work out the exacts. He does cast Rook an apologetic if somewhat curious look.

[Rampage/Xavier Goodkind]

Xavier jolts at little at Pierce's touch, glancing between him and Rook a few times. Pierce - and the rest of the restaurant - remain blank to his senses, much to his chagrin. More than anything he'd like to see inside Pierce's head and know what he's feeling, whether or not he's telling the truth... and instead 'Mr. Sydney' is the only person he can read? He doesn't care what Pierce's boss thinks or feels!

Straightening up he turns grumpily to Pierce and hisses quietly, brow still scrunched in confusion. "I can feel him."

Then he obediently settles into his seat, face smoothing out into an expression of bland disinterest that would be more at home on sullen teenager forced to go out with his parents. "It's treating me just fine," he finally replies to Rook, voice soft and bored.

[Rook]

"I'm glad to hear that. I've taken the liberty of ordering for you both. I hope you like fish, Mr. Goodkind. Tell me, do you have any hobbies?" he asks, taking a sip of wine and brushing a stray bit of dust from his sleeve.

[Phobia/Pierce Fobster]

Pierce very carefully does not react, merely arching a slight brow at Xavier with a carefully schooled look of neutrality. He watches Rook for a reaction out of the corner of his eye as he settles in his own chair. Had Rook heard?

If Rook finds out about Rampage’s empathy then Rampage was going to kill him more than he already was going to kill Phobia after this was all through. Should Rook find out he’d held information back... he’s not actually entirely sure what the crow would do. It was easy enough to excuse it as an ability Rampage had obtained as a human for now at least. Should his superior ask anyways.

“Thank you, sir,” Pierce says in reply to the fish. Xavier going back to acting like a sullen teenager almost makes him roll his eyes, but he refrains.

[Rampage/Xavier Goodkind]

Xavier does like fish - in fact he's quite fond of sea food in general - but his mouth still thins into an annoyed line, at the man's presumption to order for him. A rather silly thing to be annoyed about, really, but having already decided that he doesn't really want to meet Rook, Xavier is going to be stubbornly negative about the entire outing.

As Pierce settles into his own seat, Xavier shifts a leg to brush it against the other man's. He did agree to try and behave, though... Tapping his fingers on the table, he manages a neutral, "Yes, thank you."

The corner of his mouth twitches up slightly, before he adds his answer, "I cook."

[Rook]

Rook gives no indication whether or not he heard Rampage's quiet aside to Phobia. He just smiles demurely. He's missed this. Setting up an appointment to meet someone on his own terms, and then watching them squirm. It reminds him of home.

"You cook?" he echoes, reaching a hand down to the seat beside him to pull up a briefcase, then opening it and extracting a manilla folder with a police report inside and laying it on the table. "And here I thought you were employed as a chef, which would make cooking your job, and the serial murder your hobby. I suppose if the cooking is the hobby, the murder must be your job, yes? If this is the case, you really ought to strive to be more professional," he drawls, sounding bored.