(Untitled)

[angelofawesome]

Date: April 10, 2003
Status: Publictastic - closed
Setting: The Manor's lobby, then restaurant
Summary: Michael arrives and is rather amused. Anyone is free to come say hi!

Comments

[theban_sphinx]

The Sphinx was having a breakfast - devouring a nice, juicy steak that was only barely fried on the outside, and deliciously fresh in the inside. Nice and chewy, she thought as she cut another piece. She had had to ask for a sharper knife - human teeth were not ideally suited for such a feast - but other than that, the morning had been quite pleasant. Even the weather was looking up - the day was likely to become warm. All she was lacking now was some amusing company.

Just then, the door swung open. She looked up, an enigmatic smile curling her lips.

[cattygabriel]

The only other person inside was a darkhaired young woman. Gabriel nodded to her, smiling pleasantly. He wondered who she was; there was a strange aura about her, she wasn't entirely human. Another goddess, perhaps; she looked... Greek.

"Good morning."

[angelofawesome]

Michael was surprised that Gabriel approached the only other person sitting in the restaurant as opposed to just sitting somewhere, but then again, maybe Gabriel knew this woman.

"Hello, person I have never met before," he said. "That steak looks delicious." Well, a little on the rare side, but still.

[theban_sphinx]

”Why, good morning to you, as well”, the Sphix said. She regarded the newcomers, still smiling. They did have the feel of immortals, so, she decided, it would be best to be careful with them.

“And greetings, person who wishes to talk in an unnecessarily lengthy way”, she added. “Doesn’t it just? But, regrettably for you, it is mine. If you want a taste, get your own.”

[angelofawesome]

"Of course!" Michael exclaimed in fake affrontment, "As if I would suggest sharing steak. Such things shouldn't be shared!" He then playfully elbowed Gabriel in the side, very gently of course. "And did you hear that, Gabriel? She implied she thinks I'm the talkative one! I never thought I'd see the day!"

[cattygabriel]

"Armageddon is nigh, then, as I'm sure you're glad to hear," Gabriel replied drily. "Although I'm not sure what you're implying. Being able to string two words together without a headache doesn't make me talkative."

He bowed slightly to the woman. "I'm Gabriel, and this is Michael. Might I know your name?"

[theban_sphinx]

”I’m known as the Sphinx”, the Sphinx said, returning the courteous nod. These two, she decided, provided plenty of entertainment just by themselves. “It’s such a pleasure to meet you.”

“Do sit”, the Sphinx added, indicating the other chairs around her table.

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel blinked. "The Sphinx? Of Thebes? It's a pleasure to meet you too."

"Thank you." He pulled out a chair and sat down, nodding to the waiter who had appeared to give him and Michael glasses of water and the breakfast menus, and passed one of the menus to Michael. If this was the same Sphinx he'd read about, she'd eaten people before, but she seemed nice enough so far. He'd wait to get to know her a little more.

Loki hadn't gotten the best of representations in books either, but both versions he had met so far... he could believe that they had done what the storytellers said they had done, but he could also believe that they truly had been wronged when it came to the prophecy of Ragnarok.

[angelofawesome]

"So um, do I call you the Sphinx, or just Sphinx?" Michael asked, sitting down and taking a menu. "It's been awhile but I don't think people go by the --- Ooo, pancakes." He gasped in delight. "Pancakes with chocolate in them!"

[theban_sphinx]

”Ah, indeed. The very same.” The Sphinx was half pleased that these people had heard of her - she, as least, hadn’t been forgotten, like so many other creatures from the past - and yet…

“I’m afraid you have me at a disadvantage, though, for I only know you by your names. What manner of beings are you?” The names were not that unusual, after all - she had even heard them used by humans.

“And I believe Sphinx would sound better, if you wished to address me”, she added to the other man. “If you manage to keep your attention on one thing long enough for a conversation, that is. Otherwise, you needn’t bother.”

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel burst out laughing at the last bit. "Very well said, my lady!"

He glanced, amused, at Michael, before answering her question. "We're angels. Judaeo-Christian pantheon," he added, remembering Loki.

He looked down at the breakfast menu. "Waffles for me, I think."

[angelofawesome]

"Pancakes with chocolate, and a cup of hot cocoa with whip cream, and bacon on the side, and potatoes of some type, although there's like twelve ways to make potatoes apparently. Awesome." Michael folded up the menu and smiled brightly at his two companions. "Yep, we're angels. Nice to meet you, Sphinx. Although, heh, sorry, it's been a long time since I last ate anything and I am starving which is why I'm all, 'foodfoodfood!' right now." He gave a nervous smile. "I'm not usually this bad, I don't think, but I'm sure Gabriel will tell you I am. But don't believe him, because he exaggerates all the time."

[cattygabriel]

"I don't need to exaggerate," Gabriel sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You do know that you can simply choose not to need food, right?"

[angelofawesome]

"Well yeah, but what's the point, then?" Michael asked. "The whole point of pretending to be human is to pretend to be human."

Huhhh... so Gabriel was all bark and no bite, apparently... He fancied himself some sort of expert on humanity, but that only went skin deep.

[cattygabriel]

"Yes, but while I'm used to having a human body and dealing with things like hunger and tiredness, you're not, so perhaps you might want to take things one step at a time. I remember it was all a little overwhelming for me, the first few times I was on Earth. Is that all you're ordering?" He signaled to the waiter and turned to the Sphinx. "Would you like anything else, Sphinx?"

[theban_sphinx]

The Sphinx had been watching the exchange with quiet fascination. At the question, she shook her head, but still didn’t stop smiling.

“How courteous of you to ask”, she said. “But no - unlike some, I have been eating every day, so I have no need to engorge myself with a pile of steaks all at once.” Or, well, she had been eating meat from some slaughtered animal every day - that was hardly enough for sustenance, in the long term, but she wasn’t supposed to harm anyone at the Manor, and she strongly suspected that cornering someone for a riddle and then consuming them would count as ‘harming.’

“So,” she said, turning her eyes on Michael, “I take you don’t pretend to be a human all that often?”