10967/You Say Po-Tatum, I say Po-tah-tum

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You Say Po-Tatum, I say Po-tah-tum
Date of Scene: 03 February 2020
Location: Main Foyer - Xavier's School
Synopsis: The awkwardness of inter-universal travel becomes quite clear to residents of the X-mansion that evening with the arrival of Tatum O'Neal.
Cast of Characters: Deadzone, Shadowcat, Nightingale, Storm




Deadzone has posed:
    Sunday, the day before school. Things have quieted down and the younger students have already head to their dorms. All in all, it's just a nice, quiet and uneventful evening at Xavier's School for the Gifted. For anyone that has been there for a while, that very fact is reason enough to know something is going to happen soon.
    As if on cue, a wind starts to pick up in the main hall of the mansion. But Ororo is nowhere to be seen. The wind picks up, starting to wind into a whirlwind. A beautiful antique vase falls off of one of the tables, smashing on the floor, the shards adding to the danger of the indoor tempest

Shadowcat has posed:
Not long after the vase falls, a few footfalls are heard at the top of the stairs up on the landing. "What is it?" Kitty Pryde can be heard asking of the small purple dragon that has landed on the railing. Lockheed is looking down at the whirlwind. As is Kitty when she gets to the railing to look down.

"Ok, who's messing around?" she asks loudly enough any students in the area and causing the phenomena will hear her. Lockheed gives a little hop assisted by a flap of wings, landing on Kitty's shoulder as she begins heading down the stairs. She's wearing a pair of socks and sweats and a t-shirt, and her hair is a bit mussed up as if she'd maybe laid down for a nap before Lockheed roused her.

Nightingale has posed:
     Though it had only been since July, one of the mansion's residents has been around long enough to know the folly of even /thinking/ the Q-word... or so one would think. A winged teen girl, perhaps about sixteen or so, pads out of the kitchen with a big red thermos in hand, cradling it as if it contained the elixir of life. Perhaps to her, it did. Her hair is long and loose, pale gold save for one small, thin braid dangling to the left side of her face, capped with three little silver beads on the end. She's in what must be her sleepwear de rigeur--a pair of red tartan sweatpants, baggy bray tank top, and big, floofy Old English Sheepdog slippers. A quiet night, right? Right!

     Wrong!

     The whirlwind, with its cause unknown, catches her off-guard, and she keeps her large, sweeping white wings tucked in neatly behind her, darting for cover behind the kitchen door. "What the heck..?!" Was Miss Munroe playing a prank in preparation for April Fool's Day?

Deadzone has posed:
    As the whirlwind grows in intensity, a portal is created about 9 feet above the ground. Swirling and crackling with lightning, for anyone willing to look up into it, it looks as if the eye of the storm goes up and up forever. Other students come out, the older ones that don't have such an early lights out time.
    Confusion. People are shaking there head in answer to Kitty. None of them are doing it. The noise of the wind roaring is getting to the point people are having to yell to be heard. Water starts to fall from the portal. It is hard to make out but a scream can be heard in the distance.

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty phases herself and Lockheed to avoid the wind and lightning. "Hambone, go... never mind. Michael, go up and get Ororo quickly," she calls, going for the student closest to the hallway to the attic before realizing which student it was and selecting another.

"Everyone stay back please," she says to the students. "Grab any teachers that you see." Kitty's normally not here this late, finishing up her guidance counselor duties and then heading back to the city. She can't decide whether she's glad of it or not as she moves a little nearer to the portal. "Lockheed, if it's Mikonia remember her forcefield stops fire," she tells the little dragon, "But she had trouble seeing through it."

Kitty continues down the stairs cautiously. This portal is nothing like the one that sent Tony Stark, Captain America, Captain Marvel, and Rogue to another planet, but that doesn't mean it isn't related to that threat.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon frowns deeply when she heard that scream. Damn. That did not sound healthy. She deposits her thermos on the counter island in the kitchen, and wraps her wings around herself, ducking out into the hallway. The water might soak her hair, but wherever her wings have covered, remain dry. Even her feathers might as well be those of a water bird, with the bizarre rain rolling right off of them.

     A healer's work was never done.

     Shielding her eyes, the winged teen searches for Kitty, staying to the edges of the fray--but close enough to be of some assistance if need be. "Ever seen anything like this?" she asks, oddly calm for the moment.

Deadzone has posed:
    The screaming from within the portal gets louder and louder. For those that dare to look within, there is a dot that is growing in size, limbs forming as it gets closer. It seems that the screaming is coming from whatever is falling towards the mansion from within.
    It feels like forever but in reality is only a few seconds when a woman in black leathers, that look reminiscent of the X uniform, lands with an unceremonious thump on the floor with a loud "Whuff!" escaping her from the portal. Upon landing, the portal sucks into itself and is gone with a loud CRACK as the air in the room is suddenly emptied of the portal and needs to refill the area.
    Rolling onto her side, looking beaten and badly bruised, a woman with jet black hair uses a baton to push herself up to her feet. She looks up at the ceiling, scowling. "The least you could do is work on the landing! You are in so much trouble when your grandfather finds out about this!"

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty shakes her head to Shannon, having to yell to be heard. "Not quite like this, no!" she yells. Teleporting discs, purple Blink portals, green Khundian portals. Portals made by Gateway twirling a bullroarer. But never one with the weather accompanying it.

Kitty hears and sees the figure that is descending towards the portal. There is a brief thought of trying to phase the person to stop them hitting the floor, but if she lost her grip the person could materialize in the floor and be killed. Given she's worried its someone in service to the Mad Titan, that might not be a bad outcome.

Instead she waits and watches as the person hits. Kitty and Lockheed step back, even phased, as the portal closes, not taking chance. "You really should phone ahead before dropping in... Miss...?" Kitty says to Tatum as the storm and portal fade away.

Nightingale has posed:
     Torn between caution and seeing someone who's hurt, Shannon just shakes her head. Damn it, she'd just gotten -out- of the medbay, and had no wish to wind up back there anytime soon! Yet there was just no way she could ignore someone who was hurt--whoever that might be. Trickster gods, friends, or foes, she just couldn't stand idly by. "Miss?" she calls out, keeping her voice soft and low, her tone soothing. "Please, come sit down? You're hurt."

Deadzone has posed:
The woman looks like she's been through hell. Her X uniform looks like the portal really beat her up, with tears, cuts, and blood. She winces as she struggles to her feet and looks around. She seems to recognize Kitty and nods her head. "O'Neal. Tatum O'Neal. Do you happen to know this world's designation?"     Tatum, as she calls herself, looks about at the students and tries to offer a smile in an attempt to be comforting. She tries to guage their reaction to her X-Man uniform. Do they know that the staff are part of the elite team of mutants? Or is this one of the worlds where that is all kept hush hush?
    An angel offers her a seat and the woman smiles. "Warren? So, you're a woman in this universe? Good to know."

Storm has posed:
"One side!" Storm orders crisply. There is a crackle to her voice that's quite rare for the teacher, outside of a crisis, and students flatten themselves to the wall as she literally flies down the stairs. Ororo's wearing loose-fitting linen pants that bare her calves, and a plain white tee with no adornment. On the ground she surveys the situation; the newcomer, Shannon, Kitty, the mess in the parlor.

Her hair's lately worn tumbling and flatteneed, and as she's just got up from bed, it's in a bit of a mess around her head, a frost, frazzled corona.

"Bedtime. /Now/," she tells the other residents-- and anyone who isn't the trio of women in the foyer almost evaporates into thin air. Literally, in one case!

Ororo turns to Tatum and takes a few steps forward. One hand lifts in a gesture of peaceful intent-- but she *does* maneuver to try and put interdict her person between the newcomer, and Shannon and Kitty's position.

"Welcome to the Xavier Institute. I'm Ororo Munroe, one of the teachers here," she tells Tatum, warily. Her eyes are all white, and the imposing air pressure around her suggests her relaxed posture is not entirely careless. "Before we all sit for tea, I'd like to know your name and intentions. Miss...?"

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty is eyeing the tattered remains, seemingly recognizing enough of the costume if perhaps not the person. "Tatum you say?" Kitty asks. "Tatum O'Neal?" Her eyes widen a little bit. "There was someone by that name but never really knew her," Kitty says, trying to dredge up from her memory what bits she had seen in some of the files. Kitty was at Oxford for awhile, so some came and went from the X-men while she was gone.

As Ororo arrives, Kitty gives her a nod. "Arrived in a portal surrounded by a twister and lightning." Lockheed is resting on Kitty's shoulder. "This isn't Warren," she says. "He's, Warren. You're not from this reality?" Kitty asks, looking a little wary.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon's eyebrows loft and she chuckles lightly, shaking her head. If allowed to do so, she guides Tatum to sit down on the stairs, watching her carefully for any particular movements or outward signs of injury that might indicate something more severe, perhaps internal. "No, I'm not Warren. He is here, though. My name's Shannon. I'm one of the students here, Miss O'Neal." As for the rest, gifts and all? Yeah, she'd just let Kitty or Miss Munroe do the talking there.

Deadzone has posed:
As Ororo's voice calls out to the students, the newcomer looks up with a face alight with joy. She nods, as if seeing the familiar face makes everything right in the world. The only thing is, unless one was at the school 3 years ago, this is not a familiar face. To Ororo however, this face looks remarkably like the old Home Ec teacher and Dr. McCoy's fiancee. "You don't know me. I know. I'm from another universe. It's a lot to explain. Hank has tried explaining it to me at least a dozen times now and I still don't get it."
    If she is being honest, the Tatum O'Neal from this world disappeared three years ago without a trace. Hank said she had gone missing from the timestream. Whatever that meant. "No. This is my... sixth world?" She raises a hand to Shannon as she approaches. "Please, don't touch. I'm a null. I take away powers. Don't want your wings falling off. I doubt it would be comfortable." She sits down, looking exhausted as the chair wobbles unsteadily from the tempest that had just taken place. The floor is wet. "The person that keeps sending me to other worlds... it was raining where I was. " She gestures to the floor. "Sorry."

Storm has posed:
"It's quite all right, Tatum," Ororo says, and her voice shifts to something more reassuring than stentorian. The white film fades from her eyes, and the pressure in the room returns to something closer to barometric norms.

"Shannon, would you be a dear and fetch some tea? Quickly please, and be mindful of close contact. She's not lying about being a null." The word is said in a clinical sense, rather than the disdain some mutants use. Ororo steps closer to Tatum, without intruding inside her arm's reach, and slips to her knees in front of the chair. It puts her head closer on a level with Tatum's and offsets some of the intimidation factor of Ororo's height.

"Before we get into the details, are you unwell? Do you need medical attention?" she inquiires, her tone quite gentle now.

Shadowcat has posed:
Kitty's initial concerns are slightly mollified as the more immediate concerns about who or what Tatum might be seem to be unlikely. She glances to Ororo, falling into the background as the senior X-man takes the lead.

"Hank's fiance," she repeats, eyebrows going up just a bit. Up on the stairs, Hambone says, "Oh wow, this is going to get retweeted so much!" Kitty glances up and winces. "To bed, now," she says, nodding to Ororo that she'll clear out the rest of the students, and then heading up the stone. "James, you know I'm the server admin, right? Send that tweet and... well, I'll let you imagine just what I'll do. But I'll get Ellie's help with the photoshop."

Hambone groans. "Oh man." He hits delete and puts his phone away as Kitty shoos him upstairs.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon nods, offering all three a warm smile and sketching a bow--out of Tatum's reach, of course. Well, that was one person she wasn't going to be able to heal. "Of course, Miss Munroe. I've got some in my dorm, won't be but a few minutes to heat up the kettle." The winged teen scurries up the stairwell and heads for the east wing and her dorm, disappearing for several minutes.

     When she does return, she's got an old but well-loved découpage tray in her hand with brass handles, old tea rose cutouts that look to be straight out of a Victorian era Valentine's Day card forming the central motif. There's a white electric teakettle with steam coming out of the spout, four plain white mugs, and a small mahogany tea chest. "I wasn't sure what kind you wanted, so I just brought down the whole thing so everyone can choose."

Deadzone has posed:
Tatum looks shocked at Kitty as she meantions how Tatum was Hank's fiance. "Wait, there was a me in this universe?" She looks confused. "That's never happened before. I've always been sent places where I hadn't been born into that reality." She takes a deep breath. "That's a new twist. Going to make this time through more awkward than the normal."
    The Null shakes her head to Shannon. "Nothing a trip to the medbay won't fix. Some broken ribs and other fun stuff. It was a hell of a fight but we sent him packing back to whatever place sourced him. I hope." She then sighs deeply, or tries to, wincing from the broken ribs. "Hank has told me often enough to not give details of the other worlds so as not to mess up your own natural order. I would give you more details, but Hank would have my hide. No matter what world I've ended up in."
    The sight of the tea tray gets a laugh, only for Tatum to stop and groan, placing a hand over her side. "Chuck has you all doctrinated in the healing properties of drinking earl grey tea? Some things never change."

Storm has posed:
"Oh dear Mother, another one," Ororo says, and heaves a long-suffering sigh. She uplifts a palm at Tatum, and shakes her head. "And-- no. I don't need to know about alternate versions of myself. I very much regret not buying into that timeshare in Coral Gables, and I don't need the spectre of regret following me." Her hand drops, and the twinkle in Ororo's eyes indicates she's being more disarming than literal.

When Shannon returns, Ororo's retrieved towels and blankets, and stoked the fire in the antique New England mantle. "Shannon, thank you for being a dear," Ororo murmurs, and helps set drinks out. Once everyone's got a proper cuppa in hand, she lifts her chin at Tatum incrementally. "So it's still Tatum then, yes?" she hazards.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon winces in sympathy, offering Tatum a wry smile. "Just make sure they don't serve you Jello," the younger mutant quips. "I've come to understand the Captain's lack of fondness for the stuff all too well."

     Within the little tea chest is actually an assortment of varied teas. Yes, Earl Grey is among them, but so is Irish breakfast tea, chamomile, peppermint, lemon zing, orange spice, peach green tea, and a few other varieties--including rooibos. A smile is given to Miss Munroe, and she dips her head by way of acknowledgement. "There's little that can't be solved over a good cup of tea."

Deadzone has posed:
Tatum chuckles, in spite of the pain at Ororo's regrets on time shares. "Thank you for understanding. Most people want to know who they were with, or how successful they were. And Hank has made sure I knew that even the smallest detail could cause ripples that become major problems later. So, I keep the worlds behind me right where they are. Behind me."
    The raven-tressed woman in the X uniform makes eye contact with Ororo and then glances down at what she herself is wearing and then nods over to Shannon. The silent communication is clear. Is the teen in the know about what the uniform means. Is she breaking any secrets.

Storm has posed:
"Ah, well. I've tried to live life with few regrets," Ororo assures Tatum with a smile. "I made my choices long ago, and part of making choices is living in contentment with their consequences." When Shannon glances away, Ororo shakes her head very minutely at Tatum and lifts a reassuring hand. Not quite inviting the other woman to surrender all the secrets in her head, but putting her at ease with just a gesture.

Ororo is quite deft that way. "You could almost pass for British, Shannon," Ororo informs the winged girl. "I'm sure Kitty will come say hello later, too, once she's wrangled the last of the children into bed, Mary Elizabeth, I can *hear* you breathing by the stairs," Ororo says, sipping her tea and staring straight ahead at Tatum.

Theere's a shocked gasp and the pattering of invisible feet, and Ororo's sky-blue eyes roll with a tolerant exasperation.

Nightingale has posed:
     For her part, Shannon does not seem at all shocked by the tattered X-uniform that Tatum is wearing. However, neither does she make a big deal of it, just smiling and winking quickly at the newcomer. Beyond that, she said nothing on the matter, until some indication otherwise was given by Miss Munroe. "That's a first, Miss. Is it that weird for kids to like tea, that I could pass for British?" She shrugs, and grins impishly at both. "Okay, so mom passed on a love of music, tea, and antiques to me."

     The remark about the Professor and the virtues of drinking Earl Grey tea, have her thinking, though. She shrugs, and smiles a little bit. "Have yet to meet him. But then again, I kept hearing about Warren from day one here, and found out he wasn't a myth after all around Christmas. So who knows, there's hope yet."

Deadzone has posed:
Mary Elizabeth's pitter patting footsteps brings a smile to Tatum's face. "So, I've been here before? And you say I was Hank's fiance? That means I can only be in one of two worlds." She pauses a minute, letting the weight of that realization truly hit home. She licks her lips slowly and takes a deep breath, regretting that decision almost instantly as she winces in pain. "What class was I teaching here? Was I music or home ec?"
    She sips at the tea and a smile spreads on her face. Whether tea actually has the powers to sooth or it's just conditioning from the Professor, a cup of tea really does make everything better. "Well, you haven't hit on me in the five minutes I've been here, so I can already tell that you're nothing like Warren. You'll meet the Professor. He's just a very, very busy man."

Storm has posed:
"Our Warren's not *quite* so bad," Ororo says. Her tone suggests she's mustering more solidarity than fact to her aid. "But... last that... *a* Tatum was here," the goddess says, carefully. "She was teaching Home Ec. If that's familiar footing for you at all," she offers, hastily.

Clearly, this isn't the first interdimensional refugee that Ororo's fielded.

"You'll understand, I hope, if you're invited to stay in the guest quarters tonight," she bids Tatum. It's hardly a pile of hay in the barn; the guest quarters are quite lavish, in their way. "Charles will, I'm certain, want to meet with you tomorrow." A little complex body language is expressed in a shrug and gesture; security is inconvenient, but mandatory. And, quite necessary.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon lets out a soft little sigh, perhaps a bit heavier than a girl her age ought to. "Ha," she almost spits out. "As if that'd do any good anyways. I'm pretty much kryptonite." She shrugs, and puts a smile on her face, the expression at direct odds with the venom she just directed at herself. Her wings ruffle lightly before settling in once more behind her, tucked in neatly and well out of reach.

     A slight nod of agreement is given, the teen's tone becoming much more mild at the shift in subject. "I'm sure I will. Myths do, after all, often prove to have a basis in reality in the end. Other matters do need to come first, it's all good."

Deadzone has posed:
A slow nod of head as she is told that Home Ec was her class here. She looks deep in thought, her eyes darting back and forth as she tries to put timelines together. Her train of thought is derailed by mention of the guest suite and of meeting with Charles the next day. "Naturally," she agrees with a nod. Security, keeping the teens safe until they are able to take care of themselves, is paramount.
    Tatum shakes her head over to Shannon. "No you're not. I can tell you right now that most teenagers, boy or girl or anything in between are all mostly too scared to try asking a person they like out. You'll find yours. Probably when you least expect it."

Storm has posed:
Ororo shakes her head, rising. "And, I think that's enough discussion for the moment. The last thing anyone needs is advice from someone who's seeen it done already, but better." She offers Tatum a polite hand up, but thinks better of it, and instead clasps her own hands and gestures grandly at the door as if Tatum were a distinguished guest. "Please. I'll show you to a warm bed, at least for tonight. When the sun rises, we'll have more to discuss, I'm sure," she bids the newcomer.

"Shannon-- I'm quite sure it is past your bedtime," she reminds the younger woman. "Would you please count heads on your way to dreamland?"

Nightingale has posed:
     "Of course, Miss Munroe. Sleep well when you get there, and I'll see you in class tomorrow. Oh, and Miss O'Neal? Welcome. Or welcome back, whichever applies." Shannon sketches a somewhat theatrical bow to the pair, her wings snapping out briefly to their full span. The tea things are collected and put back on her tray, with the young woman slipping back upstairs to the student dorms. She does make a brief round of both the boys' and girls' dorms, listening near each door to make certain, without intruding, that all is well, returning to her own room to drift off to sleep.