1659/Getting to Know You

Getting to Know You
Date of Scene:	27 July 2017
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Blink, 209

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Blink has posed:
It's mid-morning on the isle of Genosha. Despite the warm climes, a soft shower of rain falls outside the mutant's apartment, the glass doors to her small veranda having been thrown wide so that the smell of clean rain fills the room.

Wearing her green lycra cycling shorts under a Pogue's t-shirt that's two sizes too large. The mutant's hair is slicked back and damp, either from a shower or standing outside. As she moves around the room, she hums to herself tunelessly. It seems the teen is actually cleaning her room!

Lucy (209) has posed:
Lucy is here. It might take a moment to realise it given how quiet the girl is on her approach but it seems that she has arrived to visit with Blink as she is gesturing to the mutant from the doorway. She doesn't speak often, though Blink has heard her upon occasion. So it makes some sort of sense, perhaps, that she is standing there silently observing.

The girl is a blonde again on this particular afternoon. Her pale yellow tresses frame her shoulders and fall back across them toward the floor, highlighting those brilliatn blue eyes and her pale face, rounded slightly in the manner of the classic ingenue. She blinks once and then takes a deep breath, with it the first whisper of sound she's made.

Then Lucy finally just walks into the room and gently begins to assist in the cleaning, straightening some items and disposing of others. Nothing is spontaneously disappearing this time.

Blink has posed:
The other girl is sensed rather than seen, Clarice's hours upon hours of combat training making her more reactive to the world around her. When she spins to see who this other person is however, she barely stops herself summoning one of those crystal javelins she'd played with before.

It takes a second or two to see Lucy, and to make a note of what she's doing. Blink giggles, moving towards a small kitchenette to one side of the main room. "Morning Luce! You don't need to do that, really..." Collecting something small and black from the counter-top, she presses a button then slips it into her ear. Tapping it she adds; "It's bluetooth. Paired with my phone... I thought it might be easier for you?" The helpful teen offers an unsure grin, waiting to see the other girl's reaction.

Lucy (209) has posed:
A soft, sweetly feminine voice plays through the bluetooth speaker a seocnd later. "Seems satisfactory," the girl replies laconically. She continues to tidy up for now, keeping her gaze on her work. She is frowning thoughtfully as she straightens to study the room, apparently ignoring the conversation entirely.

"Work needs to be done. It makes no sense to waste time by watching," Lucia adds helpfully in a very matter-of-fact way as she turns to survey the room. "Your doorway is damp." Somehow Lucy doesn't appear to be despite walking in from the rain without a coat. She takes a deep breath now and then pauses for perhaps a second.

Blue eyes finally come to rest on blink. She holds that position for about a seconds and then adds- through the bluetooth, of course-, "Thank you."

Blink has posed:
"It'll dry as soon as the sun comes back out." Blink responds with that Barbadian laid back attitude, obviously unworried about the rain coming in through the open doorway. Throwing the last piece of clothing into a laundry basket pulled from the bedroom for that purpose, she gives the room a once over.

"And I think that'll do it for now. Now, what's this thanking for? Normally it should be me thanking you for helping..." She's moving back towards the kitchen. "Can I get you a drink? I've got a couple cans of orange soda here somewhere..."

Lucy (209) has posed:
"Yes, please," Lucy responds quietly to the offer of a drink. She leaves the other qquestion untouched for a moment, stopping beside the table to study the room with a thoughtful frown resting on her lips. The girl's expression doesn't betray anything as she surveys the now properly tidied apartment but eventually she shakes herh ead once.

"Thank you for acquiring the bluetooth device," Lucy clarifies without actually turning toward Blink. "...And for taking me into the water," the girl adds quietly. Now she is staring out of the home at the rain outside, changing the position of her gaze with a slight tilt of her shoulders. "We didn't really get to talk."

Blink has posed:
"That we didn't!" The teen's agreement sounds a little muffled with her head half in the small fridge under the counter. Pulling out two cans of generic orange soda, she places one on the counter within easy each of the blonde, cracking her own as she talks.;

"I guessed you were shy, or else it's all a bit much." Her easy grin sits on her face like it's comfortable there. "And I wasn't really sure that /actual/ talking didn't hurt your throat or something. So it seemed right to grab something to make things easier on you. It must be hard enough getting dropped off however many years in the past!" The teen gives her head a shake, apparently unable to work out exactly how that would feel. "Pretty crazy right?"

Lucy (209) has posed:
"Speaking can be dangerous," Lucia replies somewhat laconically. It's several moments before the girl actually turns and moves to the counter to carefully take her soda into her own hands. She cradles the drink without actually opening it, letting the silence hang for long moments while she considers Blink's words. Finally the girl replies, "I'm not from the future," she finally states in her quiet, softspoken way. "Molly as cast out of time, This is my natural time. But it is... Still crazy." SSHe breathes a soft sigh and shakes her head firmly from left to right.

Blink has posed:
Blinks eyes widen. "Oh! I mean, the way she looks after you I just assumed..." A beat, and the mutant's pinky-purple cheeks turn to plum. "Ah... Right, gotcha." She shifts a little, taking her can to flop onto one end of the sofa, legs spread out before her.

Covering from whatever new thought of the relationship between Lucy & Molly that's popped into the teen's head, she shifts her bravado back into full gear. "Crazy is certainly the word! Got flying supes and mutants all over the place, with wizards and witches and goodness knows what else. And now they're making..." She pauses, thinks. "Uh... Cyborg or Android? I mean, I only know what I've seen on Star Trek, but there's a big difference isn't there?"

Lucy (209) has posed:
"...Cyborg is appropriate. I have very few mechanical components." Lucy gives a brief shake of her head, then frowns as she cants her head slightly to the left. "Unless one discriminates based on synthetic cognition." A beat. "My brain includes a computerized component." She takes her can carefully into her small hands and then takes a deep breath, moving to the couch to seat herself beside blink as she takes a deep breath.

"Cyborgs are people. Androids are wholly synthetic beings." Lucia gives a faint shrug at this, shfiting her weight from left to right briefly and then turning those blue eyes on to Blink to study her carefully. "Can sometimes be hard to tell."

Blink has posed:
The mutant nods, taking another slurp of her soda whilst she listens. "There was one episode though, where the android showed that he had a heart... Or something. And they all started treating him as human." She pauses, then offers; "And that's just silly, there's more sentient creatures than just humans. And... Congrats I guess? On finding another Cyborg to be your..." The can waves, non-commital in her final wording.

Blink shifts on the sofa, giving Lucy a little more room, but only so that she can rest her feet on a small coffee table that seems to be in place just for that purpose. "It's nice to meet you properly Lucy." She grins. "I think you have questions, the way you stare at things for ages, looks... questiony." It's not a word, but her grin covers that well right? right.

Lucy (209) has posed:
"My...?" Lucy blinks,s hrugging as if to indicate the silence might even be a word. She has none for it either it seems. She takes a deep breath and then sips her drink, shifting her weight from left to right. The girl twists to face Blink properly and then watches, tilting herh ead slightly as shedoes. "Questions are important. They are the basis of learning," shes states seriously. "Too much to learn. Lots of questions." The girl licks her lips before adding, "It is very nice to meet you as well." Then she sips her drink again carefully "Sometimes recognising things is... Difficult," the girl admits slowly. "Too many possibilities and iterations."

Blink has posed:
"People tend to get past that by making assumptions." Blink opines lightly with a smile. "And uh... I suppose the term I was going to use was... girlfriend? You two look pretty close." There's no judgement there, it's simple statement of fact from the mutant. With the prejudice she has to deal with, gender fluidity and sexual preference doesn't even enter the purple girl's radar.

"But yeah, there's lots to learn, and never enough time huh?" She thinks, having got used to the voice in her ear now. After all, it's not much different from the tac mics they use in training. "You can ask me anything you like Lucy, I'm an open book!" Her grin is bright, her eyes glowing with sincerity, if also a little naviette.

Lucy (209) has posed:
"...?" There's a pause while Lucy considers Blinks words then she slowly shakes her head. "We're not dating," the girl responds slowly, her head still canted slightly to the left while she studies Blink intently, from head to toe. "Molly would say she's old enough to be my mother. Which is true." She takes another gulp of soda, then uses her left hand to smooth her skirt with her fingertips, taking a deep breath as she does so.

"Open book," the girl repeats back in her usual clinical tone. There's a pause while she considers this but then she gives a slow nod. "You may ask what you wish as well," she begins before adding slowly,"...With the notation I may simply choosen not to answer." She shrugs her slender shoulders at this. "...You have questions you are trying not to ask. Yes?"

Blink has posed:
Blink grins. "See? Open book." The mutant takes another gulp of soda, getting her head in order. "I suppose the biggest one is, what's it like? Do you still feel like everyone else? Like, emotionally?" Now it's started, the flood gates are open, Blink continues;

"Does it hurt? Can you feel all those little... /thingys/ inside you? Do they itch like my hand did?" She holds the pinky purple bunch of digits up for a moment, as if visual aids might be needed. "How old are you? Why did you let them do it to you? /Did/ you let them? Should I be seeking swift and terrible vengence on your behalf?" The last if offered with a grin, there's just a hint there though, that she'd do it. If it were needed.

Lucy (209) has posed:
There's a brief pause while Lucy appears to be considering the barrage of questions, her blue eyes trained on the far wall of the room. "I still feel- things. Like everyone else? No. That is not sympomatic of cybernetic enhancement however. Molly feels normally and has more extensive augmentations." This response is given rather clinically, with the girl shrugging faintly as she answers.

"It does not hurt, no. Sometimes it might, perhaps. The nanites are capable of disabling nervous system response. They do not cause me pain." The girl frowns at this, biting her bottom lip for a second, and slowly lowers her shoulders. Her voice is softer for a second. "I itched once, but not now. You would not ordinarily itch either. Sensory- information gathering is more intense. Unusual physical structure. Result of mutation.

"I am nineteen. I did not let them do anything. Initial hybridization procedure was performed when I was five following a serious car accident. Neural computer is a form of prosthesis." There's a brief pause and Lucy takes the opportunity to finish off her soda and se the can aside.

"Molly is already seeking vengeance. She could possibly utilize assistance." There's a beat before Lucy adds, "...Irrelevant, while on Genosha."

Blink has posed:
"So... They did it to try and help?" Blink does her best to follow the coldly clinical asessment Lucy gives of herself. It appears the reason for what they did is almost more important than what they actually did. "Though if Molly's going about kicking butts and taking names, then I guess they took it further than they needed to." It's only half a question.

Clarice reaches out, attempting to give the blonde a one armed hug. "It's okay, people did things to me too, not so much I'm thinking, or at least, not so computery." The wannabe super-hero answers Lucy's shrug with one of her own. "We experiments have to stick together right?"

Lucy (209) has posed:
Lucy blinks at that last statement but then she nods slowly. The girl returns the hug from Clarice, leaning in closely and squeezing tightly in that way only someone twice her size should be able to do. Not enough to harm but that strength is still felt.

"...Initial procedure was medical. Subsequent pocedures were experimental," the girl offers somewhat laconically. "My- mother was a cyberneticist. She stole a prototype computer she had built from the research lab where she worked in order to revive me from a coma when I was five."

Lucy takes a deep breath now and then holds it for about a solid second. "Her employers did not find this as compelling a reason to allow me to have the prototype as she did. They were unable to remove the device so they forced me to be the primary text subject for the experiment they built the processor for instead."

Finally the girl adds in a bare whisper, "...Affirmative. I will protect you and Molly both."

Blink has posed:
"Protect us?" This is clearly not how the mutant expected that comment to be taken. After a moment though, she settles with; "How about we all protect each other huh? Six arms are better than two, no matter how strong they are." Victor might not do well with group tactics, but Blink was trying to learn. Sometimes.

"I'm sorry the company took so much of you." She pauses, grins; "You know, I could just... take a wander through their lab, maybe take care of any records of you? I could be there and back in a few minutes if you can show me what it looks like..." She might be a bit longer if she appears on another floor, but hey, what's ten minutes between friends eh?

Lucy (209) has posed:
"Would need to find their server site first and then take care of all remaining personnel with definitive knowledge of my existence as well. It is possible," Lucy replies slowly. "Molly had the same thought," she adds in that slow, even tone she seems to prefer.

"I do not know i that would be practical. The danger would be extremely high." Lucy shrugs her shoulders very slowly. "Thank you for offering, Perhaos if more information becomes availalbe." Then the girl sighs and shifts her weight back slowly. "Protecting one another is good. That implies participation fromall parties. Therefore: I will protect you."

Blink has posed:
"And I'll protect you." Blink offers with another hug before letting the girl get comfortable without her arm making lumps for Lucy. Shifting herself to scoot down a little (her oversized shirt riding up as she does, revealing those emerald green shorts), Clarice crosses on ankle over the other.

"Kinda dark all of a sudden isn't it?" She looks over at Lucy with a grin. "The conversation I mean... Not the rain." The soft patter can still be heard through the open bay doors. "I know! What's your favourite colour?" There, that's a nice /normal/ question.

Lucy (209) has posed:
Lucy does settle in comfortably. The pair are hugging at the time that Clarice is readjusting herself and as a result Lucy ends up in a position where the easiest way to move would be to lay across the larger girl. She doees so quietly.

"My favourite colour?" The girl measures out her words carefully, letting each of them hang just long enough to seem to be of tremendous importance. "Blue," the girl states firmly then, taking a slow, deep breath as she does so. "...Did it hurt? When they experimented upon you as well." Apparently Lucy has some not os normal questiosn of her own.

Blink has posed:
Blink stiffens at the question, but forces herself to relax one muscle at a time. It's quite an odd sensation, laying on her legs as they relax one, then the other. By the time she's finished, she's already talking; "Yes, it hurt." She smiles sadly down at Lucy, the bravado starting to slip. "They didn't think we deserved pain killers or anasthetic. So they stuck needles in m... In us, and did whatever it was they wanted to us. It uh... wasn't fun."

Glowing green orbs have taken to looking out the window, not seeing what's actually there as she looks in the direction that the slave pens were. "We were slaves you see, so they could do what they wanted to something they /owned/. No human rights acts include mutants." The final line is added with a twist to those plum coloured lips, a hint of bitterness creeping in.

Lucy (209) has posed:
"It hurt when they experiemnted on me as well," Lucy responds in another gentle whisper. "But I got better. So they made me hurt again."Lucy is clearly holding something back with that statement. It's obvious in the way she holds herself, how her muscles tense slightly as she trembles faintly against the other girl.

"I was also considered property. Laws apply but that would require revealing who they are." There's a soft sigh and then Lucy shifts her weight slightly against the other girl. Azure yes turn toward the window, following Blink's movements. "It wasn't fun," she agreew finally.

Blink has posed:
Long moments of silence spread out between the two as they both relive parts of their lives they'd probably prefer were just forgotten. But pain makes it's mark, and on the young most of all. Finally Blink realises that she's stroking Lucy's belly without noticing, the mutant stops, a sheepish grin alighting on her face.

"Sorry... I kinda, figet, when I'm thinking." She gives by way of explanation of what her hand was doing to the other woman's flesh. "What's your favourite thing to do?" She asks suddenly, determined to try and lighten the mood.

Lucy (209) has posed:
Lucy blinks slowly when Clarice withdraws her hand. While her expression remains solemn the girl's cheeks do flush a very faint red and in so doing throw off her carefully coordinated colour scheme. She pauses for a second and presses her lips together while she thinks.

"I do not fidget," Lucy offers quietly. "When I think. I think about many things... All the time. No processing power left for fidgeting." SHe shrugs at this, tiltign her head very slightly and continuing to watch the other girl's face withotu any indication that she minds the contact. Of course, Lucy is already half laying against her by this point. Body dynamics.
    "My favourite thing... to do." There's a pause and Lucy actually furrows her brow, worrying her bottom lip gently with her teeth while she considers the question. "I do not know that i have a favourite thing," she offers finally. "Difficult to remember ealrier things. Enjoy internet browsing-signal tracing-investigation." A brief pause. "...Sculpting?"

Blink has posed:
"Oh Luce, they really did a number on you huh?" Clarice offers by way of comiseration over losing memories. The blush is just one more thing to make the young cyborg rather adorable, just one more character quirk that gives the mutant yet more reason to want to protect her. For the briefest of moments, Clarice's mind wanders to query if that's actually by design or by accident, but she doesn't say anything on the matter.

"Sculpting's a hobby yeah, is that what you were doing at the beach, with the castle?" Another gulp of orange soda as the rain patters down a stuccato backbeat to their conversation.

Lucy (209) has posed:
Lucy shrugs slowly at that statement about memories. She nods slightly but then adds, "...I couldn't form memories without the prosthesis anyway." The girl shifts ery slightly, her slight weight a warm presence against Clarice's side, and then takes a deep breath.

There's a slow nod afterward, in response to the second question. "Sculpting is- the closest I can come to explaining. It is very little like sculpting but... Yes." She nods once, slowly. "Sculpting. Or constructing? The nanites were intended to primarily behave as mobile three dimensional printing equipment. These came with medical programming but are fit for purpose in a huge number of tasks."

Lucia takes a deep breath and then sighs softly, allowing silence to settle over the pair in what is actuall ya rather companionable way.

Blink has posed:
"So the prothesis... Runs everything? Sort of lets you run the little nanite thingies... And also keeps your brain from shutting down back into that coma?" The purple girl is frowning, trying to work out the minutia of the matter despite her attempts to lighten the mood earlier.

"So... Your Moma was trying to help you... But all the nanites came later with the experiements? Sort of, see how much your computer can handle?" A beat; "Wait, do they /talk/ to you?" Her head swivels to take in the full length of the little woman with her, tilting down a little to try and catch her gaze as she answers.

Lucy (209) has posed:
"The computer and my brain- both..." Lucia frowns and then shakes her head quickly i na flurry of blodne tresses. "They work together. But higher function would be impossible without the computer, yes." Lucy states this so simply Clarice might be forgiven for thinking she doesn't care. The girl is, however, trembling very faintly. Yet somehow she continues to speak.

"The nanites talk to the computer. The comptuer communicates with my brain. My brain tells the computer what it should attempt and then those instructions are translated and relayed to the nanites," Lucia offers helpfully. "As if yu were using a computer except this one talks directly to your thoughts." She licks her lips briefly, looking up as the larger girl looks down.

"I'm not sure- if it's talking. It's almost like a hum. Thousands of insects in a swarm doing the bidding od a queen. THat is why they call it a nanohive." There's a pause for Lucy to take a very slow, long breath. "The nanite experiment- was..." A beat. "The computer was never intended for prosthetic implementation. My mother repurposed it without telling her employers she had ever completed it. It was intended to be used as a controller device for the nanite swarm. And when they found out...

"They took me and used the computer anyway. Instead of the intended volunteer I became the host because the implementation was done in such a way as to ensure the destruction of the control module if it was disconnected from my brain. I presume mother idd it as a form of insurance. To keep them from- killing me."

Blue eyes stare intensely into Blink's now, studying the unusual teen's gaze carefully as if to see what she thinks of all of this. She's prepared to go on- but hesitating, perhaps wondering if that would be desired.

Blink has posed:
Clarice's answer is to resume her gentle stroking. Lucy's trembling yes, but something about the way she's volunteering the information makes the mutant think she might /need/ to talk. "I guess a lot of people just see the machines huh, instead of the girl that's there too?" She can relate to that, just replace 'machines' with 'mutant'.

"Is that when it started hurting? When they started putting the uh... The nanohive in?" Her gaze doesn't waver, though her look does soften, some of the blase mask leaching away to be replaced with an open smile instead. Empathy, that's the thing.

Lucy (209) has posed:
"People rarely see a girl if they realiz there is a machine. WIthout a machine they see a helpless child. The choice is not especially attractive. And... Nanohive. Nanite colony. The name isn't generally standardized," Lucia responds simply. When the stroking begins again she relaxes slightly, leaning into the Blink as she does so. Her hands begin to roam, quietly exploring Clarice's sides in a manner designed to allow her to count the woman's ribs.

"It didn't hurt when they put the hive in," the blonde offers helpfully in that perfectly even, serious tone she holds to the vast majority of the time. "They were kind enough to use anaesthesia. ain did not occur until tests began. Examining capacity of nanites both in memory of physiological structure, imperative response to threat to the host. Testing capability of nanites medically... Particularly in supporting the lifespan of someone who was otherwise going to die. And the ability of an incapacitated host to maintain control- of the... Hive."

Blink has posed:
Blink pales, going from pinky purple to just bright pink. Her hand pauses for a fraction as words she /does/ understand enter the deluge of technological jargon. Tests to the point of incapacitation. She takes a calming breath even as spots of plum appear on her cheeks, not blushing, anger.

"I can see why Molly wanted to get revenge for you." Stroke, stroke - it's got to be terrifying for Lucy, Blink remembers. "It must have been awful for you. I've seen what your nanites can do for someone wounded... I guess they did everything they could to you, to see what you could come back from..." It's not a question really, she remembers similiar happening when the Overseers found out her powers had manifested...

Lucy (209) has posed:
"It was eventually determined that only the central nervous system is required for a host to adequately maintain control of the controller. Nanites can provide sufficient sensory data for operation," Lucy responds woodenly to that last statement before closing her eyes. "Incidentally, it was also proven impossible for the nanites to cause irreparable harm to their host." Then she is squeezing BLink tightly, somewhat in contrast with the soft, unemotive way in which she is speaking. The girl keeps her eyes squeezed shut and buries her head agains the mutant's chest before she mumbles, "...Molly doesn't know most of this." She's- actually speaking. Not through the earpiece, for once. "I don't want to tell her. She- knows I was mistreated. And that's enough for her."

Blink has posed:
There's a moment of confusion, and then Clarice does the only thing she can do. She holds the smaller woman. What do you say when someone admits that their body was deconstructed by their own system? The teenage mutant certainly has no idea, so instead she just holds the girl, rocking her lightly.

"I'd like to get to know you..." She finally admits to this Not-Just-A-Cyborg girl that's appeared. Or was always there? She's certainly no shrink, or even an intellectual like Magneto or Wanda. Portals only get you so far in life...

"If that's okay I mean... I'm sorry it happened to you. All I can say is if I can do anything, I won't ever let that happen again." And going by a recent news broadcast which featured the teen dropping a heavily armoured guy through a jet turbine... Well that's a pretty big /anything/ to offer.

Lucy (209) has posed:
Lucy nods quickly a couple of times and then she is just clinging to Clarice, curling in and tucking her knees close to her abdomen as if by being smaller she will somehow find a bit more safety. It does allow her to be easily cradled in the mutant's arms, something the girl is currently taking advantage of shamelessly.

"Okay, " Lucy continues in the same quiet, fierce whisper. "ANd if you are ever in danger- or hurt- then I will help you," Lucia repsonds seriously. "I can protect you too." There's a tremulous note in the small woman's voice. "We can figure out what to do about these people tomorrow."

Blink has posed:
"Tomorrow is soon enough." Clarice agrees, shifting her legs to accomodate the small girl burrowing into her. The stroking continues, but now it's the blonde's back that gets the attention, what with their shift in positions.

"And I won't tell Molly unless you want me to. It's your past, your secret." The last scentence sounds like something often repeated, like she's said it to someone else before. Many times. "Like I said before, us experiments have to stick together. But I should have also said, that we're not /just/ experiments, not to each other."