1571/Log

Log
Date of Scene:	20 July 2017
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Magik, Cypher

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Magik has posed:
    It's late in the evening, though the sun still shines brightly in the sky, though it is well on its way to setting. It brings with it a nice shift in temperature and an evening breeze that scares away the summer humidity, making the outdoors inviting. Already, a few lightning bugs can be seen flittering here and there, giving an indication that when the sun is truly gone, the place is going to be bedazzled with glowing bug butts.

    Illyana herself has taken advantage of this atmosphere to claim one of the chaise lounges about the pool. In her swimsuit even (a nice, suprrisingly modest bikini), in case she wanted to take a dip. The fact she's out at this hour lends evidence that she has no interest what so ever in marring that pale skin with sunlight. She has a book in hand (The title suggest it's leisurely reading and not school reading) and on the small table next to the chaise is a drink. Out at the pool side, reading a book, practically alone... Illyana almost passes for, gasp, normal.

Cypher has posed:
Fun fact - like many students of his era, Doug used to take dance classes with Stevie Hunter! It was sort of an all-round athletics thing, multi-disciplined... etc. But anyway, he thought he'd come out for a dip--and he's got his earbuds in, cranked up, and a towel over his shoulders; he's wearing sandals and a pair of baggy trunks as he goes through some of those old moves. Step-step turn dip, shoulder-action...

And he's singing to himself, as he tosses his towel over a chaise longue. "There's a maniac, right in front of me -- got an angel on my shoulder, Illyana-stopheles..." Which is when he waves, and kicks off his sandals. "But Mama raised me good, Mama raised me right, mama said do what you what, say prayers at night..."

Magik has posed:
    It's the glaringly /old/ music that gets Illyana's attention first. Lowering her sunglasses, she peers over them to find the culprit. One thin brow hikes its way on her forehead when its revealed to be none other than Doug. The dancing is surprising, but see, she caught that little reference to her, so she's stuck between being annoyed and being impressed. Oh, she's being waved at. She continues to just give him this flat stare over her glasses.

    AS his singing continues, she marks her page, pushes her shades back upon her nose and stands up. There's a sense of purpose as she strides to where he stands. "Can I see those?" She asks of his earbuds and what they're attached to. And provided he does answer her request, she'll take the electronics with one hand and /shove/ him into the water with the other.

Cypher has posed:
Hey, it's only... about a decade old. But if she LOOKS at Doug's playlist, he's got stuff in there from the 80s. For serious. He likes old tunes! "Hey, Illyana, um, sure--" He blinks, a little owlishly when she takes his little microcomputer, and then he says, "What's uuuup--"

He should've known she was going to push him into the water, he could've read her intentions, but he wasn't LISTENING, was he? No, he wasn't. Which is why he falls backward into the water with a tremendous splash--

And then surfaces, kicking and brushing water out of his eyes and off his face. He spits some out. "Hey!"

Magik has posed:
    Ah. The resulting splash and immediate sputtering is /true/ music, and Illyana smirks. And yes, since she has it in hand, she does indeed go through the playlist, her thumb scrolling through it while her other hand rests on her cocked hip. Lots of old stuff, she notes, before she turns it off and sets it on a nearby table. See? She was considerate and made sure the expensive stuff didn't get watered. "A fan of oldies, I take it? You could use a bit more Sabbath in that list, though." She adjusts her sunglasses. "I've always been fond of 'Paranoid'." Go fig. And then she peers down at him after lifting the sunglasses to rest on her bangs. And there's a bit of a smirk.

Cypher has posed:
Doug looks up, and says, "I'm not much of a metalhead." Then he puts his hands on the edges of the pool and bodily lifts himself out of it, shedding water. "Well, I was going to go for a swim anyway," He says, before he stands there, and drips. He runs his fingers through wet hair, and then says, "So." He looks up and away, and then finishes, somewhat lamely, "...How are you?"

Magik has posed:
    "...We're not friends anymore," Says Illyana upon the statement that Doug doesn't do Metal. Despite the same cold, nonchalant delivery, it's obvious even to someone who /isn't/ in possession of Doug's linquistic capabilities that she's really not serious about it. What's likely surprising is that the statement indicates she considers the weirdo a friend in the first place. "It's the right temperature for swimming," she does agree. "It's warm enough still that you can justify getting in the water, but it's not so hot that you want to stay in the water. And it won't turn you into lobster regardless of where you are." Siberian-skin. It's kind of like Irish skin. It has two states of tanning: None and Lobster Red.

    How is she. "Usual. But on the upper end." She indicates the empty pool area to indicate why she would be a little more 'up' in her mood. Loners, go fig.

Cypher has posed:
Doug shakes water off his shoulders, and then tilts his head at Illyana, and grins. "I know you don't mean that." He says. Then he says "Well I mean... I like some stuff? I like Twisted Sister?" Indeed, even though his player hasn't added it yet, at the very least I Am (I'm Me) is in there. Then he says, "But I get it, you're into the whole spikes and skulls and black magic thing. It IS very... er... you."

Then, perhaps avoiding a hex, he turns, and executes a neat dive into deep water, before he swims across the pool under the water. Then he pops back up. "Say, do you like the Addams Famaily?"

Magik has posed:
    There's that flat look again and she snorts. "Twisted Sister is alright. Here..." She walks over to her little device and after fighting with the two things (Hey, she was 7 when the last time she had to deal with this technology) she manages to share a few things. "YOu should try Lordi." They're set back down on a table, and she removes her glasses. She doesn't answer his question until she follows him into the pool, though she just sort of jumps in with as much enthusiasm as she did shoving him into the pool into the first place. "I vaguely recall watching some episodes, and the movie with Raul Julia. Barely." She smirks. "They don't exactly have television in hell dimensions, despite what people may think."

Cypher has posed:
Doug spits water out when he resurfaces again, and he says, "Yeah, and if they did, it's probably all... Barney and documentaries about the British Royal Family or something." He makes a face, and then he treads water, before he says, "So, Illyana--" He floats, "...What are you planning to do when you finish school here?" Then he's swimming backwards, sweeps of his arms along with gentle kicks propelling him to part of the pool where his feet touch the bottom.

Magik has posed:
    Illyana just idly treads water for a few moments while she considers the question. "I'm not sure," she says. "I will probably just... stick aorund," she says this quietly. "My brother, Piotr, is already an X-Man. And it's because of him that I was already associating with the X-Men as it were. Even after I graduate, I will probably stay here until I've gotten a better handle on my mutant power." She tilts her head. "Why?"

Cypher has posed:
Doug rests his arms on the edge of the pool. He really is almost comically fit considering that he's a big computer nerd. But he's been taking pains to stay that way; jogging in the mornings, hitting the weight bench. It's almost comical to watch, but he's so earnest about it. "Oh." He says, "Because I hadn't decided yet, that's all. I'm taking classes... journalism, some compsci. But I don't know. I was thinking... maybe... of becoming an X-Man myself?"

Magik has posed:
    "How did you die?" Illyana then spouts out, leaning her elbows against the same edge and just letting her legs float out before her.

Cypher has posed:
Doug blinks, and then he says, "Oh." He says, "I've been trying not to think about it. My memories of that whole night aren't very good." Then he says, "It was the Smile-Faces. They'd attacked a group of Morlocks in New York, and the X-Men sent us to escort a bunch of kids out to the safe zone. Only a bunch of them had stealthed, and they ambushed us... scattered us. I remember that much. Magneto caught up to us, I remember... and then I saw that somebody was going to get shot. I don't even remember who--I just remember screaming 'Look Out' and then moving. It didn't even hurt, it felt like somebody pushed me over. Somebody yelled at me, and I remember saying 'I'm sorry, I won't do it again'... then nothing." He looks down. "I asked Magneto what happened after, and he refused to tell me. He did tell me he killed the Smiley that shot me. I heard he crushed him in his own armor."

Magik has posed:
    Illyana focuses on the water while Doug speaks, occasionally giving a nod here or there being used to having to give visual cues that she actually /is/ listening and paying attention. "So you took a bullet for someone else," she comments idly, whether to him directly or just musing outloud it's unknown. She then taeks a breath and says, "Then being an X-Man is probably a fitting choice. They do seem to have to have at least a minute amount of that trait lurking." She then tilts her head here, regarding Doug, "But the other options sound good too. Not many people actually get a second chance. And who knows what all your new body is capable of in terms of longetivity."

    She's quiet for a few more moments before she says, "At any rate.... You likely belong here. Much as I do. There's no where else to go for me save where I came /from/," and she's not talking about Russia, either. "I mean..." She flashes what is a genuine smile, but how it plays iwth the rest of her features kind of makes her look like she belongs in the next Psycho Slasher flick, "Can you see me working a mundane job? Like fast food?"

Cypher has posed:
"My parents still live in Salem Center. My dad was one of the school's lawyers, for years -- it's how I was introduced to the students, though nobody ever told me I was a mutant until--" He laughs, at that memory, but he doesn't share it." He pushes himself up to sit on the side of the pool, his feet in the water. "Oh, there are a lot of jobs you could work!" He ticks off on his fingers, "Customer service for a cable company, complaints office, late night horror-movie hostess..." He's funning, just a little bit.

Magik has posed:
    Illyana's thin brows arch upwards and then lower menacingly over those pale blue eyes. "I swear, Douglas Ramsey, if you are envisioning me in a skin tight, cleavage bearing black dress with my hair in a bouffant, you will be cursed with gremlins for the next week." Glower Glower, doom and gloom, geek boy. Still, there is something woven in her words and posture that would at least speak to him that the threat is (mostly) empty. Still, one must make sure one isn't being fantasized about, heh.

    "Ah yes, the parent problem. That would still need to be addressed." She's quiet for a moment before she asks, "Have you talked to Professor Xavier or maybe Dr. McCoy about the possibility of that scenario. Push come to shove, Xavier /is/ a Telepath, and could maybe do something. But that might be outside his sphere of willingness." Sigh. Psychics with Morales. Sometimes they prevent shit from just getting /done/.

Cypher has posed:
"Oh, no!" Doug says, holding up his hands. "If I were going to fantasize about you it wouldn't be in an Elvira dress! It'd be something little and--" He pauses, "Red. Erk." He shakes his head, and waves his hands. "Nevermindnevermindnevermind." Then he sighs. "I just--I just don't know if I can do it. They BURIED me. And I mean I'm sure they know about my grave being dug up now, but--" He says, "Telling them means bringing them into a world I don't know if they should be part of."

Magik has posed:
    He gets a full on splash for THAT. But there is a laughing note in her eyes. But back to serious matters. "Hence, why I suggested Xavier and McCoy," she's quiet here. "To perhaps they can come up with solutions to make you unrecognizable or ...arrange for circumstnaces that would cause them to move away from here. Though, that sounds difficult. They have lived their entire lives here, I'm assuming. Those sorts area always hesitant to move."

Cypher has posed:
"...Yeah." Doug says, after raising his arms to protect himself from the splash. "I don't know." he says. "I suppose I owe them the truth. But I just--" He sighs, gently, "It's going to hurt them so much. But they... do deserve the truth. I guess I'm just hedging because I know you can't REALLY go home again..." He shakes his head, "And for a guy whose mutant power is knowing the right words, I sure don't seem to have them when I think about that."

Magik has posed:
    Illyana focuses on Doug for a moment. "You say they deserv eit, but is it the /right/ course?" she asks. "There is comfort in ignorance, Doug. It may be best for them to leave you dead. Of course, you can't ever know until the action's taken, but think about it. Will it do them any good to know that some alien force ressurected their son that they buried years ago?" She's quiet for a moment and she focuses down on the water again. "There's a reason why I haven't asked Piotr to take me home, after all."

Cypher has posed:
"I don't know." Doug says. "There's a risk that if I go into Salem Center to get a hot dog or something that someone will recognize me," He says, "But--" He puts his hands on his forehead, and says, his eyes widening a touch, "There's a reason I keep putting it off. What a nightmare! Holy cats." He shakes his head, and then swings his legs up to lie on the edge of the pool, one hand dangling into the water, the other resting on his belly. "Thanks, Illy-bean. I know you're trying to help, and I appreciate it."

Magik has posed:
    Illyana tilts her head slightly, "I mean it. Speak to the Professor or Dr. McCoy. They will at least have something resembling solutions. Ones that would actually work towards resolving your dilemma instead of making them worse." Then he gives his thanks and that leaves her blinking before she snorts. "'Illy-bean'. Don't let the underclassmen catch that." Doom flowers for everyone! "But... you're welcome. Your situation isn't so dissimilar from mine, after all."

Cypher has posed:
Then Doug looks up at the sky, and puffs out his cheeks, and lets out a slow breath. "I was never exactly a Bobby DaCosta BEFORE I died. And since, the one person who's been into me at all is this... guy with pheromone powers, and he's nice and all but--" He shakes his head, and then sits up, with his elbows on his knees. "Illyana, would you like to go to dinner sometime? I mean, I don't have any MONEY, but I could probably borrow some. Maybe down to New York. I bet between the two of us we could find a really dope Russian place, the kind where nobody speaks any English--"

Magik has posed:
    Illyana just rolls her eyes and then while she's processing 'pheremones' there comes the dinner invitation. It leaves her, to be blunt, utterly speechless. Complete with mouth agape. All she needs now is a little cartoony demon popping up to politely close her motuh for her. This doesn't happen, thankfully. "Are you asking me on a date that I have to pay for?" is the first thing that comes out of her mouth in true Illyana fashion. It even has that 'I haven't processed my words through my this is acceptable company filter' edge to it. It's only a heartbeat or three later, and probably during whatever backpedaling that may be happening, that she goes, "I think I'd like that."

Cypher has posed:
That makes Doug beam, all sunny-like. "You would? Keen! I mean--" He says, "I'll wear a suit and everything, it'll be great!" He's excited, visibly so, but really what's radiating off of him is that he, the kid who was regarded as the nerd with a dopey power in a school made of rejects, asked a girl out on a date, even if it is the scary alterna-chick, and she said 'sure'! This is new ground for him. "Okay. ...When? Is there anything else you'd like to do? Would you like a private Dazzler concert? I might be able to make that happen...!"

Magik has posed:
    Illyana's handsa re up and she's uttering the Russian equivilent of 'Hold your horses'. "Doug... doug. Let's see if I can cope with being in a restaraunt in New York first..." She frowns. "Or... a restaraunt period." Remember, Illyana doesn't 'people' well.

Cypher has posed:
Doug nods. "Right. Right. Okay." He says, "One thing at a time." He lies back again, and then holds his arms out over his head. "Whoo! If they could see me now...!" But then he lets his arms drop again, and he sighs, "Man, I miss them." And then he says, "But yeah. I met this guy, his name's Daken, which is Japanese for 'Mongrel' or 'Halfbreed' and he's... intense. And he wanted to be friends, but he also was really *into* me. And I learned I can detect pheromones, because I pick up on them 'talking' to me. It was so weird."

Magik has posed:
    She can't help it. The giddiness and enthusiasm of Doug's reaction gets her to bark out a laugh. It still kind of has that 'evil queen cackle' edge to it, but it's obvious that there's nothing malicious about the act. She then hefts herself out of the water to sit on the edge and drip dry a bit. Can't get all pruny skin and if she stays in too long her hair absorbs the chlorine and she doesn't want to run around with green tinted hair. "Daken, huh?"

    When he emphasises the 'into' part, her mouth works before her brain does. "Was he at least hot?"

Cypher has posed:
"Yeah, and I swear he reminds me of someone but I can't put my finger on who. He didn't try anything." Then he rubs the back of his neck and says "It was kind of hard to tell through the fog of pheromones he was giving off but yeah? I mean, I think so?" He shrugs his shoulders and says, "I don't know? Sure. Let's go with it." He turns his head and then says, "Have you ever been to Asgard?"

Magik has posed:
    Hot or not, though, now that each time the word pheremone gets mentioned, Illyana's expression darkens. She seems unfocused as she regards her hands which are resting on her lap, her eyes seemingly seeing osmething else. "I would... stay away from him," she says quietly, her voice sounding as if she's speaking out of a memory. "Until you're certain you can resist them. He could hurt you that way." She then flickers her eyes up to look at Doug, but it's obvious she's still kind of stuck in whatever mindscape she just fell in. "And then I would have to hurt him. And he wouldn't like that."

    She slowly straightens and glances skyward, as if to give herself a minute to shake off the possible literal demons of her past. "No. I wasn't ever able to leave Limbo until recently. And I came here."

Cypher has posed:
"Well, they were affecting me, but at the same time, knowing they were there helped me know what was me and what was them, and then helped me see past them. I don't know how well that would work for someeone else. But I guess my power works on subliminal communication, too." Doug sits up again, and then he rolls his eyes. "If you ever meet any of my friends, don't believe them -- Asgard sucks."

He waves his arms for emphasis, "They all got to be warriors and valkyries and stuff, and do you know what I got?" He scoffs, "Enslaved by vikings and forced to *wash their crusty dishes*. And somebody threw his furry underwear into the wash water, and I don't know HOW he got gravy all over his underwear... I'm also not sure that it was gravy. Asgard *sucks*!"

Magik has posed:
    "Furry underwear?" Illyana focusesx on that to try to shove away unpleasant memories. She can't believe that her first response to Doug's predicament was to inquire about attractiveness. Damn that corruption sneaking in at the oddest moments. "It might be different if you went to Asgard /now/," she points out. "Viking culture is woven around the strong. A scrawny linguist likely didn't fit their definition. Be thankful that you were just stuck washing dishes."

Cypher has posed:
Doug pauses, and then he makes a bicep. He studies it as if he's really not used to it being there. "...You think?" He asks, seeming puzzled at the very idea. "Well I mean eventually there was a library, and it had a lot of neat stuff in it--I almost stayed to take care of it, but only because I was afraid that whatever the vikings didn't burn for kindling, they would eat!"

Magik has posed:
    Illyana smirks here before she stands up. "I wouldn't be too sure about that. Pop culture's labeled them illiterate barbarians. You sound like you would've happily died in that library." She even says this semi-affectionately!

Cypher has posed:
"It would've been better than what I got!" Doug says, rubbing his scalp with a palm. "But yeah, it had languages in it that never even existed in this iteration of the universe. But..." He says, "It was probably for the best that I didn't go there." Then he says, "So you're from Hell, huh?" He gives Illyana an open, curious look. "What's it like? Rivers of lava, cackling demons?"

Magik has posed:
    What's Hell like? "Hell." Illyana states simply. "Though, Limbo isn't so much that as well... kind of bland. But it's dimsal and dreary. It sucks your life from you and it warps you. And what the land doesn't take from you, the occupants will." She stretches. "You'll probably see it eventually. My stepping disks can't directly go anywhere; they must connect first to LImbo before opening up to where I want to go." She grins here. "And if you're good, I might let you see. But..." She's quiet for a moment. "It's not a good place. And you... your light is pure enough that It will want to darken as soon as possible." And she's speaking from experience. Limbo /loves/ the pure souls.

    "But... No rivers of lava. Sorry," this is said with a quirk of her lips.

Cypher has posed:
"Oh. So it's more like the Grey Waste than the Nine Hells." Doug says, "I get it. Gary Gygax got more right than he did wrong, you know?" He shakes his head, and then says, "Maybe not as pure as you'd think. Sometimes I wonder." He says, before he shakes it off, and says, "I think I can take care of myself. Don't worry, Illy-bean. Then he paauses, and his voice saddens, "All you see is the darkness inside you, and none of the light, huh. Maybe we can fix that. One thing I've learned during a short and interrupted life... you find light in unexpected places."

Magik has posed:
    This causes her to blink and then she actually gives a light laugh. "You sound like my brother. Save without the extra protectiveness." She pauses. "Don't let Piotr know we're to have dinner," she suddenly says. But then she's quiet again. "I've...kind of drained myself, I think. Thinking. I"m going to go wash off and get some dinner. Or something." She gives a bit of a smile. "Thank you." And she doesn't say anything else as she grabs her towel and effects and heads for the pool-side showers.