It was…Nice to have a quiet day, but it was weird for his laptop to be at home and not open on his lap. Instead, he was on the couch, watching…Something, with Micah leaning onto his side. It wasn't weird in the wrong sense, but something he wasn't used to.

Exclusivity.

He looked down at Micah briefly, then moved around slightly. Something was ticking in the back of his head, and the urge to get up was getting louder the more he remained seated. He frowned, then sighed. “I need to get up.” There was an apologetic look in his eyes, but this need was getting worse. Something was telling him to go outside.. Maybe if he went out for air then that would fix the feeling.

------

Exclusivity...

Honestly, Micah still wasn't sure what this was. They hadn't fully defined it, given it a label, or anything like that. Which was fine! She didn't care so much about the lack of it, but more because of that lack, her expectations were a little all over the place.

A quiet weekend at home, not ******** like rabbits or working like the workaholics that they were, but rather just...spending time...was not something she expected.

But it was nice.

She expected him to get antsy sooner than he did, though, so she shifted as soon as he did, glancing at him and noting his apologetic expression. "Something up?" she thought to ask, eyes going back to the TV briefly before she reached for the remote and hit pause.

It was rare, but there was no irritation or iciness in her voice. Just curiosity.

Maybe even concern.

------

As soon as Micah shifted, Zay sat forward and turned to look at her. “Need to go outside…Im not sure why though.” He sighed and got up off of the couch, walking to the door to put his shoes on. He knew the code to Micah’s apartment, but he did turn to look at her to see if she wanted to come with him. If not, that was fine, maybe he just needed the air. He wasn't used to not working or ******** Micah’s brains out [two past times he very much enjoyed], which is why he started walking, seemingly on auto pilot. When Zay finally started paying attention to where he was going, he found himself at a bush.

There was something there, it was calling to him.

Slowly, he squatted down, analyzing the bush thoroughly to see if he could find anything out of place. Nevermind the fact that he was looking at some random bush, in Destiny City, where he could be attacked by a random magical creature. Eventually, something brown caught his eye and somehow he just knew. That…That whatever it is was the thing calling him.

As if he were in a trance, he slowly reached for the half buried thing, sucking in a breath as soon as his hand grasped around it. He pulled, and the thing came free from the dirt. With it, came some changes…

Where did his clothes go? Why the <********> was he dressed like something out of the Tarzan movies mixed with….What? Elves and….A forest hermit?

The hell?

------

A number of things went through her mind when he said he had to go outside. Was he having a change of heart about this whole arrangement? Or maybe he was feeling a bit stifled with spending this much time with her without much "return" or productivity?

There were a few others, which she quickly sifted through and dismissed them as too unlike him. So at his quiet invite, she gave a little nod.

"I'll catch up with you," she said as she slowly got up. "Bathroom."

It couldn't have been more than a few minutes between him leaving and her getting downstairs and catching sight of his back going in some random direction. She followed after him at an idle pace; as long as he was within sight, she was fine to give him space if he wanted it.

Of course, him ducking into a bush did catch her attention.

As did his new outfit.

Familiar colors from a distance and, as she sprinted to close the gap between them, familiar symbols.

Before she could say anything though, she processed his outfit.

And burst out laughing.

------

His eye twitched.

Then, Zayaan stood up with a look of pure annoyance. His hair wasn't even in its hair tie anymore? How did touching a…He looked down at the item he held in his hands, ******** stuffed animal paw cause him to change his whole a** appearance?! There was the rare mumble of him cursing in Nigerian just as he turned to face his laughing…Well they weren't sure what they were yet.

“What is this?” He showed her the paw, hoping Micah would know something.

“How do I change back? What’s so funny?”

------

It was a minute or so before Micah was able to fully get her laughter under control. While not normally someone so expressive, it was hard not to laugh at h– Zayaan's predicament. Which, truth be told, really wasn't a huge one. Considering how she awakened, she almost wanted to complain to the universe why his introduction to knighthood was so tame compared to hers.

Almost.

Micah wasn't much for griping or whining or complaining. She took what was given to her and walked as best she could with it.

"Your outfit, mostly," she said, amusement still lighting up her eyes even after she had calmed down. She walked toward him and leaned in to take a look at what he was showing her. "But also your reaction."

Once she was satisfied, she stepped closer, hand resting on his chest...and she pushed.

And pushed, until they'd slipped past the brush and out of sight of the general public.

"Let's start with your name first," she said, tone calm but hushed even though she knew it'd be less than useful if there was anyone powered around and able to sense his signature. "Just focus for a second, it should just come naturally to you."

------

Because he was surprised, and not because he could still hear the sound of Micah's laugher [and wanting to hear it more often], Zayaan was taken off guard when she began to push him past the bush and out of sight. What was wrong with him being on the sidewalk? Even stranger, was the fact that she asked what his name was. That earned her a frown, and he was about to ask if she had some sort of memory loss when looking at him.

Instead, it was like he was on autopilot.

“Turkana…”

The ******** he being mind controlled now!?

------

"Alright, good," she said, committing the name to memory before nodding her head back down to his hand. "Next thing. Right now you're kind of a beacon for things like that thing that attacked you a while back."

Before they kissed.

Before things got weird.

Before they became...whatever they were now.

Not that that was important right then, so she willed herself to focus on the immediate situation. It wasn't urgent but it was something that had to be addressed now versus later, so. "To get back to being just you, focus again and just...think about putting that paw you showed me away."

------

Ah, yes…He remembered that creature.

That's when it clicked.

“I'm like you then.”

Not a question, but a statement.

So he was some sort of magical costumed person? That just didn't compute with his extremely logical brain. Magic….didn't exist. But then how would he explain this outfit, the name, and what Micah did to that creature all that while ago? Turkana closed his eyes and let out some air, trying to calm down and focus. When he did, he felt something shift and by the time he opened his eyes, he was himself again and the paw was gone.

“Need an explanation.”

------

She visibly relaxed when he went back to just being Zayaan, extending her arm and putting a bit of space between them as she took a breath, though her hand stayed on his chest.

"We should get back to my apartment," came her response. "Need privacy for it. Sensitive and all that."

Though it occurred to her that there was someplace else that would be even more private than her apartment. She debated it a moment before meeting his eyes.

"Well. There is one other place we can go, so you pick. My apartment, or my Wonder?" And before he could cut her off to ask what a "wonder" was, she said, "I'll explain when we get there, if you pick that one."

------

Zayaan was all set to go back to Micah’s apartment, but then she said they could go…to her wonder? Was that some kind of weird code word for a base? He opened his mouth to ask just what the ******** she put in her coffee that morning when she said she would explain if he choose to go. We'll, he figured it wouldn't be far or whatever, so his frown deepened but he simply said, “Wonder.”

Hopefully it was a short walk from here, he could use some fresh air.