11127/Healers Take Flight

Healers Take Flight
Date of Scene:	26 February 2020
Location:	Library - Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Josiah and Shannon both share a bit of their backgrounds, and agree to meet for further practice with their abilities.
Cast of Characters:	Nightingale, Firefly (Barrows)

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Nightingale has posed:
     Talk of ships, and shoes, and sealing wax, cabbages and kings went on amongst the trio of Josiah, Shannon, and Megan for a little while longer, after Megan had sought some help with an upcoming term paper on the Iliad and heroics. But eventually, even the most stalwart student had to rest, the pink-haired girl tumbling off to get some much-needed rest. This left Shannon and Josiah in the library still. She looks at the young man somewhat in awe of his gifts, and smiles. "That's pretty incredible," she remarks, as the light seems to emenate from him a few moments longer. "How is it you do that?"

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "To be honest I just pray to give me the ability to do what I want. It started out as a prayer. now it is instinctual." Josiah says calmly as he watches the woman. "Granted if I lose concentration I lose my wings. you however dont." He says as he smiles at her.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon smiles and ducks her head, turning a tiny bit rosy in the face. She does, however, extend her wings to their full span, shifting in her chair so if he wants to see he can. "So you had to learn to control that gift, too." She sighs a little bit. "There was another healer here, but they had to go just before Christmas, and take care of family matters. We just about figured out my gifts were somewhat close to his, and thought it might be possible to learn to shift them from what they are now, to something far less harmful." Biting her lower lip, she thinks for a moment. "I remember what it felt like, when you healed me. But how does it feel to you on your end, when in the middle of healing someone?"

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "At first, it feels good. Anytime I summon the light I feel calm and peaceful. After a while of healing others I begin to feel less warm. A little colder with each person I heal." He says softly. "I believe it is because my own lifeforce powers the light and brings it to this world." He says as he watches her.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods slowly, taking this in as she listens. Perhaps there were more similarities than she thought. "For me, it's... painful. Very painful. I still don't fully understand how the connection is made, but I can guess it has to do with my life force forming a connection with the person I'm healing. If I focus, I can use that as a diagnostic tool, and not let a healing happen. But once it does, I can't stop it in the middle, not yet. And if the connection is forcibly broken, it can prove deadly to me, if left untreated." She purses her lips, looking over at Josiah. "It's almost like when the connection is made, I... don't quite know how to direct the flow outwards actively, rather than passively like when using the gift to simply sense injuries. It's hard to explain."

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    Josiah moves a hand to hold her hand. His hand was warm and begins to glow in her hand, the light filling them both with warm and peace. "I may be some religious goof, but I think god gave me my gifts to help others. I can use it offensively...It stuns the life force from those I touch with it. I dont know anyone else using the same light as me." He says as he looks into her eyes.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon smiles a little as he holds her hand, allowing the healing light to flow into her. She allows her eyes to half-close, turning her senses inwards as she has done with first Josh, then Chris, in trying to learn from each healer in turn. The ache of their departure fades, leaving for the moment only the good memories. "I saw some security footage of a major healing in progress I took part in some months ago," she offers, cautious. "I don't remember seeing any light, but the wounds that were on the injured, became my own. No wonder they don't like it when I heal. It's... frightening to watch. But Someone's given us both our gifts. How can we -not- use them?"

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    Josiah nods. "I can only hope I can help out." He says as he watches her. "When I first saw you I thought you were an angel of some sort." He says softly as he studies her. "But I guess that would be foolish, an angel asking me for help." He says with a chuckle. He then looks about and then back to her. "So I have seen you, and kitty, and now megan...Making so many friends to preach to come sunday." He says jokingly.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon blushes even more, smiling a little bit. "I'm just a mortal," she says, her voice low, holding still as he studies her. "And don't forget Sam Guthrie among all those," she reminds him. "He's the one who was with me at the revival, who brought me there for healing. He's become something like an older brother to me, and I couldn't ask for better."

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "OF course, how could I forget Sam." He says with a nod. "I am hoping to learn more of my abilities...I try and experiment everyday with them. With time I will understand them better." He says as he shrugs. "This light....feels alive to me." He says as he looks to his hand. "Like it has a mind of it's own and it wants to shine." He says with a nod.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon smiles a little, her silky alto voice lifting in song for just a few moments. "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine...!" She nods, and smiles softly in understanding. "With a gift like ours, there's a -need- to use it. It runs deep, and it can only be denied for so long."

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "Exactly." Josiah says as he watches her. He nods. He smiles as he looks to her. "So i am curious. Someone as pretty as you must be seeing someone." He says with a grin as he watches her. "I am curious because I was going to ask you out on a date if you werent seeing anyone."

Nightingale has posed:
     There is, for the briefest of moments, a very pained look on Shannon's face, but even that is quickly washed away by the gentle healing light. "I've had my heart broken a lot before," she offers, cautiously. "Sometimes, I think I can hope... I've let myself fall and fall hard, and each time it's hurt worse." She bites her lower lip, considering. "I've... been out once or twice but I'm not sure where it's going. What did you have in mind?"

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "Well we can start by a date, then maybe see where that leads." He says teasingly and he smiles. "I just want to get to know you more. The more I hear of you, the more I am stunned by how such a person came to be. Growing up there were always con artists and bigots and overly zealous religious types who wanted to destroy our church." He says as he watches her.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon smiles some and ducks her head. "I was and am real lucky. My family's loved and supported me the whole way. Not everyone's so fortunate." Her brows furrow, and a soft sigh escapes her, not even the healing light enough to wipe away the distress this time. "There's bigotry everywhere, sadly. I encountered it in Salem Center a few weeks ago. It came down to me having to fight, I tried but wasn't able to walk away." She looks over at him, listening to his tale of his beginnings, quiet for the moment.

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "In alabama a few zealots thought a child preacher was my parents using their children to get money from already poor hands. They trashed the furniture of the community center where we were allowed to present our church. If it werent thanks to Zack it would have come to blows." He says with a sigh as he remembers those times. "Zack was a marine who got discharged for having ptsd. He kept solving things with violence and he followed our church for a while, helping us out. He helps my parents out with church stuff."

Nightingale has posed:
     "I'd like to think that childhood is something in some small way, we can all hold onto a piece of. But the day those of us with the gene manifested, oftentimes everything changed forever, and we had to grow up quickly. Some of us if we're lucky have that support at home, but so many don't. You had your parents, and it sounds like Zack, too. They all sound like remarkable people." Shannon smiles some, tilting her head to one side as she peers over at him. "Does your healing light usually shine this long at a time? Is it going to hurt you if it does?"

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "Shining the light doesnt drain my lifeforce. Healing injuries and diseases, specifically life threatening diseases can cause it to drain and dwindle." Josiah says as he watches her. The light fades as he watches her. "So how about a training session tomorrow if your free. We can use the back yard." He says as he watches the woman.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon nods, and smiles. "Sounds like a good idea. Only... how are we going to train, without injuries to practice on?" She watches the light dwindle, and it feels a little bit colder, but not so much that it's distressing. "How do you go about practicing yourself?"

Firefly (Barrows) has posed:
    "I stab myself or cut myself. Healing my own injuries doesnt take much life force, and anytime I shine my light my wounds heal." He says as he watches the woman. "It also explains why I am in such good shape without daily exercise." He says as he goes to stand. "Anyway going to go to my room, see you tomorrow?"

Nightingale has posed:
     That does make Shannon wince a little bit. "I don't like the idea of you having to injure yourself," she says, very hesitant. "If there was any other way... perhaps we could both volunteer in the Wellness Office? There's oftentimes quite a few bumps and bruises that come through there to keep one in practice, without having to hurt yourself for the sake of learning."

     Nodding, she smiles some, and stands, tucking her wings in neatly behind her, hands at her sides. "See you tomorrow, then? I'll bring some snacks if you like."