<Nocturnal Harmonia>

[Apollymi]

Donnie like most children of color, knew better than to push after their entire government name was spoken. Nikki couldn't remember the last time she'd heard her full name outside of graduating high school. She grinned watching this sort of interaction and noting how quickly Donnie shifted to flattery to keep his mother's temper in check. What was more, the woman actually fell for it, her son calling her beautiful and noticing the difference in her hair was enough to make her subconsciously touch it, "Si~ I went to Philly a few days ago. Kim's always so nice when I stop by~" she mentioned as if it was a perfectly normal thing to do. "Wait a minute!!~" Rio recovered looking at her son, her mood souring but only playfully. She knew the lad after went for distractions when he was in trouble. As for his actual logic, it was big, "Excusas," was all his mother had to say about such a thing, but she also knew her son, she wasn't actually that miffed about his behavior. Once in the sitting room, there would be another dog, and another sparkly eyed moment from Nikki. "Oh!~ It's Reina too!~" she seemed far too pleased to meet a dog who wasn't even very interested in her owner. "Mate, I love Mithos, but this one might be my spirit animal~" Nikki commented after watching that exchange. Rio chortled just a little, Reina wasn't prone to over the top reactions at all.

Beyond all of that, Donnie began giving a status report on his time away, leaving out any 'incriminating' evidence. He relayed to his mother the fact that he'd been knighted while he was out, "Really?! My baby!~" his mother was far too amused way too proud of him, holding both sides of his face and cuddling him as if he was a young boy. "I knew you'd grow up to be somebody special!~" she claimed. Only to have her husband interrupt. "Leave him be!~" his mother said obviously the dynamic between these two was very interesting. Jordan King was a very well put together man. Nikki's eyes scanned his form as they always would and now with both his parents in the room, she could put the lad together piece by piece, except for those eyes. Those had to be some sort of genetic anomaly. Ah but soon a hand was extended her way, and after an introduction Nikki was reaching out, with a firm handshake of her own and a bright smile. "Nice to meet, ya~" Nikki managed while staring, "That jaw line runs in the family, King T'halla has one right between these two. Brilliant~" she seemed almost amused. As for the news that Donnie wore the underwear she designed, she smiled brightly. Rio, ever helpful to her son, "Leave Donnie alone~" she said. "But mijo, you really do… she deserves to know~" His mother played the middle. "Oh, that's fine. I knew that… he's been wearing everything I made for him for the last few days. If I have my way, it'll be all he wears~" Nikki confirmed a bright smile on her face as she confirmed for everyone that Donnie was her favorite muse.

[Bloodedge]

Donnie's effort to distract Rio only worked for a moment, but he didn't need it to work any longer than that. Even after the realization of what happened, the woman didn't return to her previous state of ire. There wasn't much to say about him singing to Nikki's ass either, bar... excuses. "Verdades," was the only other thing Donnie said before addressing Reina, who hardly gave him the time of day. Nikki claimed this one of his dogs was her spirit animal, and Donnie sighed. The dog was already giving her more attention than she'd given Donnie. "Of course it is. Everybody fuck with Reina, Reina fuck with everybody but me. Rude ass," he complained playfully.

With the reveal that Donnie had been knighted, his father arrived from upstairs. A brief exchange between men ended in the attempt to embarrass the younger King. Jordan even got to believe it worked... for a moment. Alas, Donnie didn't seem as bothered as he should have, and Nikki herself seemed proud to already know about the underwear drawer. "Really? Already talking about drawls, huh?" he asked rhetorically. Donnie wasn't planning on addressing that leading topic regardless... but there was one more thing he was just waiting to see Jordan realize. "You know my baby brother?" Jordan questioned, much to Donnie's disappointment. "Really?! Nobody wanna talk about that Dahmer ass shit?" Donnie wondered. Already, he was done with his dad. "Man, whatever. Ay Ma, can I get some seasonings? And uh... maybe some foil too."

[Apollymi]

Donnie stated that he only spoke truths and his mother gave Nikki a quick once over. Perhaps… she was too hard on her son… she'd seen less bountiful asses distract men before and honestly, Nikoleta Corbyn was one of those types of people with personality to match. "Ta loco," Rio said about her son as she watched him further tease the female of his dog pairing. His new friend claimed to enjoy the lazier of the dogs on a spiritual level and Donnie claimed the dog liked everyone except him, "Maybe because you call her rude mijo. Reina's a good girl, so easy-going~" Rio said about the dog that she'd spent the most time with from his pair.

Meanwhile, embarrassment didn't really exist between Donnie and Nikki. Jordan's mention of his choice in underpants, was one thing, but that was to be expected. "We talk clothes all the time. I'm a fashion designer after all~" Nikki claimed with a tinge of happiness. It still might have been her greatest achievement yet to have created multiple outfits for Donnie to wear. Meanwhile her introduction to Jordan was just as odd as any introduction to Nikki could be, she noted his facial features and his strong resemblance to his known family members. "Aye, I ran into him, during that whole Kamish thing. He's brilliant!~ He gave me some materials to work with afterwards I want to get back around, show him what I did with it~" Nikki said about King T'Challa. As for Donnie's commentary Nikki scoffed. "Donnie, promise, I'm not gonna go feral and eat your parents~" she claimed as if this was something to be discussed playfully. Rio was soon enough being asked about some things the lad wanted to take from the house. "Of course Donnie, come on…" she said giving a casual glance backwards as she lead him to the kitchen. She picked up an extra unopened box of foil from the pantry and opened up the spice drawers on her way past them. "She doesn't actually eat people does she? This won't be enough foil," Rio said, maybe in seriousness maybe in jest.

[Bloodedge]

Could it be possible that Reina didn't bother much with Donnie because he called her rude? No way! He'd been doting on that dog for so long, she'd received more than most living humans in terms of affection and quality of life alike. "Ma, her whole breed literally called Bully! Callin' her rude is just callin' a spade a spade!" he argued. Still, Donnie drew closer to the female dog, rubbing her head. When that head lifted under his attention, he switched to scratching under her chin instead. "But I guess you aight sometimes, girl. Apparently I like 'em toxic anyway, don't I~" he said to the creature.

While Donnie received some amount of actual attention from his eldest dog, Jordan was casually getting to know Nikki. She was a National Hunter, just as his younger brother was, but he knew not every one of them was familiar with every other one. Apparently though, they were acquainted enough that King T'Challa had given her something. "Did he? Must've seen the queen in you. Boy wouldn't have given shit to a white person," he said, just barely avoiding laughter at the thought. As for the 'Dahmer' matter Donnie brought up, Jordan wasn't worried about a thing. "Boy I don't know how you ever pull a girl if your best game is comparin' 'em to serial killers!" he announced. "Ay! Don't try to roast the game! Don't forget I'm the one that get to decide whether you end up in a home or not!" Donnie clapped back. "Uh-huh. Don't forget I'm the one that get to decide whether you get locked-up or not!" Jordan said while Donnie walked off, waving away his every word. With that, he was moving on to the kitchen with Rio... who offered a box of aluminum foil and asked if Nikki actually ate people. That notion put a thought in his head, bringing about a pause. Technically, he had an answer that wasn't so literal. It took a moment to sort through his thoughts and actually respond. "Come on now, Ma. She... probably don't eat people. From what I saw over there in London, British people wouldn't know how to make a human taste good anyway. You know how bad I coulda used a carne guisada while I was there? Matter fact, when you gon' make another one?"

[Apollymi]

Apparently the breed of dog that Reina was, was known for bullying, but that didn't matter to Rio. "Eh? Well… she's a sweet girl, be nice to her~" Rio encouraged. Perhaps the lad's relationship with toxic women was to blame for how he interpreted such behaviors. Still, he was getting some love from his eldest dog and having a good time. Still while that occurred a nice little chat was happening between Nikki and Jordan. She was indeed familiar with his younger brother, and he'd done her quite a favor by handing over some materials she eventually learned she could make use of. Jordan attributed that to the younger male, "Ha, he said something similar to that… took me a while to figure out what to do with it, but it's seriously my best work. Glad for a lil' faith~" she said about T'Challa.

Soon after, Nikki was laughing off the idea of being a serial killer while Jordan as Donnie's dad, seemed to not understand how the lad counted as having game. Nikki couldn't help but be amused, "Your dad's a riot, mate~" Nikki managed. Still, Rio wasn't quite done yet either. "You can't put him in a home and you can't arrest my baby!~" she said to both her son and husband. Their playful arguments not to be taken seriously at all. Beyond that, Donnie was walked to the kitchen where he could essentially shop through his mother's kitchen. "Ah, that's good. She's nice…nice enough to cook for?" Rio decided within a couple of moments having a good feeling about Nikki, as for her son's choice in meal for the next time that he really wanted. "Hm, carne guisada? I'll make it next time you'll be home for a few days, yeah? And you can bring a group of friends… I always make too much, your uncles complain when I send them home with it every time," she mentioned almost casually. They liked it, but didn't like having such a large supply.

[Bloodedge]

While Donnie and his father were having one of their playful spats, Rio interjected. Donnie was not allowed to put Jordan in a home, nor was Jordan allowed to put Donnie in jail. "Who can't put him in jail? I'll lock-up everybody in here but her," Jordan joked, pointing at Nikki. "Shit, Reina too. All up on my couch, with your lazy ass!" he griped jokingly at the dog, petting her affectionately nonetheless. Moving on from that, the way Nikki spoke of materials gifted to her by T'Challa was... curious. All context implied that she'd been working with vibranium. "Like that, huh? You must be the truth. So how long you been doin' this designer thing?" Jordan asked while seating himself next to Reina.

Meanwhile, Rio was expressing her thoughts about Nikki. The clause of her being nice involved an upward inflection around the topic of cooking for the young woman. "Oh yeah, no doubt. What you think I'm doin' now? I gotta put these Brits on to a real chopped cheese," he mentioned. At the same time, Donnie was checking spice racks and cabinets as if he still lived in this house and utilized this kitchen. "I need somethin' to flavor this with, though. You got another adobo layin' around in here?" he asked. As for his desire to try Rio's carne guisada recipe again, it was offered the next time he was around for a few days. He could definitely bring some friends by for that; he almost had enough to clear the type of pot his mother cooked with. It would definitely give his uncles a break. "Ma, they been done wit' that! I guarantee you uncle Rulo still got some from last year. He try to make me take some off him every time we talk, and I ain't takin' that when I could get the fresh back home~"

[Apollymi]

In a singular moment, Donnie and his father's playful spat turned into the eldest King male, making the assertion that he'd arrest everyone in the house with the exception of Nikki. "Or, you could save yourself a trip and turn him over to me… rehabilitation is really big in the UK~" Nikki claimed playfully, as if she wasn't just asserting that taking custody of an adult human was something she fully intended to do if left off the list. "Oh and her too~" she said about Reina, she wouldn't be one to let a calm lazy dog go without treats and cuddles. "Ta loco," was how Rio chose to dismiss the idea of being arrested by her husband. No matter what there would be a conversation to have though. Rio noted the girl's playfulness and the like and found her an interesting change of pace from some of the more toxic individuals in her son's life. Meanwhile, Nikki was sitting down to chat with Jordan, who seemed genuinely interested in her design career. "Ah, I've always liked design… used to draw all the time when I were younger. By the time I was 11 I'd started designing clothes for myself, modifying my school uniform and stuff like that…" she said thinking about the whole thing fondly. "Also did some line arts for tattoos logo developments and stuff like that when I was 14. Making people look good and feel comfortable became a main focus of mine, so by the time I was older I'd launched a youtube channel, fashion tips, make-up tutorials, product testing… making my brand statements and the like. Still, clothing and interior design are my favorite thing. My big sis, let me decorate her flat, made her a few dresses for a few red carpet and black tie events by the time she became independent. Then I went to school for design when I was 19… didn't finish because of the Kamish thing, plan to see about finishing in the fall. But I still managed to secure myself a fashion week, after a while. Being able to do a lot with the magic helps… I've always enjoyed composition. The pieces coming together making something new and exciting!~" Nikki beamed, there were few things she could talk about more than design. Still, she wasn't rude, "But what about you? Magic stuff has to make being a police officer pretty crazy…"

Meanwhile, Rio was finding out that her son, thought the girl he'd brought home was worth cooking for. Apparently, he was making chopped cheese for her and his other new friends. "Dios mio, cooking already. Your mother rarely gets chopped cheese~" she said in a simple and teasing manner. Still, if he wanted to do that, she'd support him, she could tell a lot about her son by how he interacted with people. The fact that this girl was with him when he came home, said quite a bit about the situation, whether he'd realized it himself yet or not. "Of course I have extra adobo, can't cook without it, bottom cabinet to the left," she said about the seasoning he was looking for. As for the rest and the amount of food she cooked as well as one of her older brothers still having some left over, "Well, that's his fault, he should eat better… and you're right. I'll always cook for you mijo~" Rio said pleased by her sons continued enjoyment of her cooking.

[Bloodedge]

A joke about turning Donnie over to Nikki instead of arresting him, was actually received quite well by Jordan. "Now that's a ten-dollar idea right there! Turn that boy in to a National. You can get him actin' right, can't you?" he joked further. From there, Jordan would find out a bit of history about Nikoleta Corbyn and her journey into the fashion world. He relaxed in his seat, listening and nodding along as she spoke. That is, until she talked about a return to her incomplete fashion school in Fall. "Blue Lotus going to fashion school? That's the craziest thing I heard since my boy said he was gon' be rich and famous," he said. Even Jordan King himself had a bit of Blue Lotus merchandise. A name like hers didn't imply a need for further learning at all. Oh well; he couldn't hate any motivation for education. As for Jordan, and any difficulties associated with being a policeman in this magical world... he chortled. "It don't make things any easier, I'll tell you that. I got me a nice little rank and some powers, though. This old man ain't doin' too bad. You won't catch me signin' up for that superhero business they got goin' on in this country though! That keeps me out of the real dangerous stuff, you know?"

Donnie's chopped cheese was a thing of local legend, or at least it was almost that. When he mentioned making it for Nikki and the others, Rio playfully complained about rarely getting it herself. "I mean, I'd make it if you asked for it. But come on now, Ma. I come through, I ain't tryna be like 'lemme cook for you' or nothin' like that. I'm tryna holla at what you makin', feel me?" he said, nudging the woman as he completed the clause. Soon, Donnie was pointed toward the adobo seasoning he'd been looking for. Right there to the left in that bottom cabinet, he found more than a single container yet to be opened. "Chingón~" he chanted while grabbing it. "This oughta be all I need. Can't give 'em too much flavor, or I'ma turn into somebody's personal chef. And Ma, leave Uncle Rulo alone! He don't eat THAT bad!" Donnie added, interestingly about the only grown man he knew to survive on cup noodles, frozen pizzas, and quesadillas made from prepackaged tortillas and pre-shredded cheese. "I mean... he could definitely eat worse stuff."