13221/Unusual Sightings: Sounds of the Motherland

Unusual Sightings: Sounds of the Motherland
Date of Scene:	07 May 2021
Location:	Teacher's Lounge, Second Floor, Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Shannon seeks out Colossus' assistance in finding and helping Vitali.
Cast of Characters:	Nightingale, Colossus

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Nightingale has posed:
     It wasn't very often that Shannon was sought out by teachers after hours, and even more rare that she would, in turn, seek them out. However, this seemed to be a day for rare occurrences, as a note was both left on one certain art teacher's desk, as well as a text message on his phone, both reading the same.

     <<When you have a moment, could we talk? Fairly urgent matter, not sure if miss Grey has briefed you yet. --Nightingale.>>

     Uh-oh.

Colossus has posed:
Colossus texts back quickly.

<<I am available now. I am in the teacher's lounge. Feel free to come and find me.>>

He frowns, taking a sip of the coffee he just poured. He's wearing a tracksuit in Russian flag colors, a hint of dark stubble on his cheeks. He's thinking about growing a beard. He wonders what could be on young Shannon's mind. She's one of the most reliable and consistent students, not one prone to trouble.

Nightingale has posed:
     <<En route. Be there in a few minutes. Spasibo.>>

     Within a few minutes, Shannon is trotting up the stairs, heading for the teacher's lounge. By now she's changed into her PJ's for the night--red tartan sweatpants, a baggy dove gray tank top, and those goofy, floofy Old English Sheepdog slippers. Her hair is long and loose, except for the little ice blue braid on the left side of her face, all still damp from the shower. A sigh of relief escapes her and she smiles faintly.

     "Thank you for being willing to meet with me, Mr. Rasputin. I'm sorry to catch you at such an odd hour like this, but I'm not sure how long it could wait."

Colossus has posed:
Colossus shakes his head, "Odd hours are nothing to me. In Russia, it would be a crisp morning right now," he says. "I'm afraid Jean hadn't informed me of whatever issue you had, so please, take a seat and fill me in."

He pulls out a chair politely for the young woman and then, before he takes a seat across from her, "Would you like a cup of coffee? Or a cruller? I believe that is what they are called."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Coffee would be perfect, thank you." Shannon settles down in the chair, pulling her feet up and tucking them beneath her so it looks as if she is giving shelter to two very shaggy sheepdog puppies, complete with little black noses and floppy pink tongues. Pale azure eyes close for a moment, the younger woman settling her wings in against her back with a light little flick and ruffle, as she gathers her thoughts.

     "I should probably start off by asking, have you heard of the snow leopard sightings in the area, that have been showing up on the news?" She purses her lips slightly, brows furrowed as she tries to think things through.

Colossus has posed:
Colossus takes a sip, unable to help being amused by the slippers as he reaches out and actually pokes one of those little black noses, "These shoes are very cute. I should get some for Illyana. She would hate them but that is part of the fun of being siblings, da?"

"I believe I have seen some of the news reports, yes. I take it you know more?"

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon just chuckles lightly, bobbing her head. "Da. I grew up an only child. The closest to siblings I've known have been Sam Guthrie, and James Proudstar. It's been an interesting adjustment." She flicks her eyebrows briefly upwards, wiggling one foot playfully at Colossus. "Let me know what size she'd need, I'll keep an eye out for a pair of these."

     But then talk turns to the matter at hand, drawing a deeper sigh from the winged healer in training. "I don't believe it's a snow leopard, to be rather blunt. It's a fellow countryman of yours, named Vitali. A shapeshifter, and a healer of no small gift, who for some reason, seems now trapped in that shape. Why, I don't know, but the reports have gone on for a few days now, and each day, the snow leopard appears in worse and worse condition."

Colossus has posed:
Colossus frowns, "A troublesome thought," he says. "I suppose that does make a sort of sense. More likely a young mutant lost and afraid than some snow leopard magically being transported into the heart of the city. Although, I suppose, anything is possible in these times," he says.

"You know this Vitali well, then? Perhaps well enough to know where he might seek shelter or help? Does he retain his consciousnes in his animal form or will he become lost in his beast?"

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon shakes her head. "No, he's not so young as I am. My guess would be on the upper end of his twenties. I'm also not certain if he's a mutant, or draws on his gifts more as a shaman." She sighs a little, rubbing her temples. "Initially, when I met him, it was on one of my morning oh-dark-stupid runs. He and another gentleman by the name of Xiang Zhao were camped actually fairly close to the school--but not on school grounds. Mr. Summers tasked Herr Wagner and I with encouraging them to move a bit farther away, but they did so on their own not too long after. There were some very pleasant talks, especially when it came to matters of healing. I couldn't help being fascinated by the different ways people manage the same sort of thing. I also had a chance to establish a light rapport with his animal companion, an eagle named Soraya."

     Shannon chuckles softly. "It was on one of these morning encounters I first saw the snow leopard. At first, I'll be honest, I thought I was going to need a new pair of pants. But Soraya wasn't spooked, and even though the leopard had an injured paw, was not at all aggressive towards me. It then shifted back into the form of Vitali."

     Her frown deepens, and she sighs again. "At this rate, I'm very concerned that the longer he remains as a leopard, the harder it will be for him to shift back, and the less of his humanity might remain."

Colossus has posed:
Colossus listens carefully, taking a sip of his coffee before he answers, "Just because he isn't a mutant doesn't mean he isn't deserving of our help. If his abilities are mystical in nature, we still have friends and allies that might be of assistance. My sister among then," he says, although he's unsure of just how broad Illyana's magickal abilities run. Sometimes he thinks he doesn't want to know.

"The first course of business would likely be finding him. I would suggest seeing if Logan might be available - if anyone knows the scent of a snow leopard among us, it's likely him. Some of the psionics might also be capable of finding his mind, especially if they can get an impression off of your own thoughts."

Nightingale has posed:
     "Miss Grey's already suggested Logan. In point of fact, she would like miss Rogue, Megan, Logan, and myself going out to find him." She tilts her head and peers up at Colossus. "I had hoped to ask if you would be willing to join in the search. One, when it comes down to it, you would be nearly impossible to hurt. Two, well..." She scratches the back of her head and smiles a little bit. "I had actually mentioned you to him once before, as a fellow countryman of his. I believe he mentioned hailing from Siberia, but that is as specific as he got."

     She nibbles her lower lip, and frowns a bit more. "I do know in highly stressful situations, there's a chance he might revert to his mother tongue. I've only picked up a little bit of the language, so you'd have someone to teach it to and speak it with. But if it came down to it, my command of the language is far from fluent."

Colossus has posed:
Colossus smiles, "You do know that Siberia is farther away from the part of Russia I am from than this city is from Mexico City?" he says with a raised eyebrow. "But da, you are right. Russian is Russian, regardless of how far apart we are. The people of the ice tend to be harsh, by nature, as they must needs be to survive there."

"I would be more than pleased to assist in the search. Especially if he needs to be subdued in any way. I can do so safely and without harm to either of us in the process."

Nightingale has posed:
     "My hope is that he can be talked down before anything like that becomes necessary. But, technically this is Rogue's mission. I'm under strict orders to stay out of the line of fire, and do what I can from there." Shannon smiles, letting out a sigh of relief. "Spasibo. I'm not sure when we're going to search for Vitali, but I hope it's soon."

Colossus has posed:
Colossus nods, "I hope so, too," he says. "Whatever I can do to help, I am happy to do so, of course," he says.

"I understand the orders, although you are getting older and closer to graduation. I know you have a birthday coming up. The time is increasingly coming where you should be treated as the adult you will soon be."

Nightingale has posed:
     "I think, perhaps, as long as I am here, I probably will always be seen as anything but. It's not as if I've exactly been trouble-free at times." Shannon cracks a light smile, and sighs, shaking her head. "I've made my fair share of mistakes, and I'm afraid those may never be forgotten. Ah, well. It's life, I suppose."

     Her brows loft, and she waggles a finger at Mr. Rasputin. "Don't you go getting any crazy ideas for my eighteenth. Bad enough Sam's got the wheels turning in his head!"

Colossus has posed:
Colossus laughs, "People will wish to celebrate you, young lady. Let them. You are allowed to be loved."

No, he doesn't think about the implications of 'you're allowed to be loved' connecting to her 18th birthday.

"And we have all made mistakes. Some of us very large ones. The mistakes are what allow us to learn and grow into the people we are becoming. I think you have done well in learning from yours."

Nightingale has posed:
     "I hope I have, anyways. Maybe others will see it, maybe not. I guess only time will really tell." Shannon rubs her temples lightly, but smiles somewhat. "At least Dr. McCoy seemed happy enough with how I handled matters the other day, in the field." Glancing up, she smiles a bit more, dipping her head. "And I never did get to thank you for helping as you did. I know, it's just what teammates do for each other, but still... spasibo."

Colossus has posed:
Colossus smiles, "You are always welcome, Shannon. And the praise you get is deserved. You did well. I'm sure Warren is grateful most of all," he smiles. "And yes, it is what teammates do, but that doesn't mean it isn't nice to say nice things to each other from time to time."

Nightingale has posed:
     "I don't expect thanks from the ones I help. It's enough that they're alive and well." The winged teen laughs a little bit, scratching the back of her head. "And this time, it's resulting in extra training from Dr. McCoy, which I'll be very glad for. Hell, I'm looking forward to the challenge."

     Rubbing her eyes a bit, Shannon begins to slowly uncurl from her chair, wiggling her feet to get some feeling back in them--to overall comical effect. "I should probably go try to get a little rest. Not sure when Rogue's going to want to get things going, maybe both of us ought to touch base with her and coordinate." She rolls her eyes and chuckles a little. "Who am I to say anything about that? You're the experienced one here, you know what's what. I'm merely a student. And that's all."