4652/Deep Waters

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Deep Waters
Date of Scene: 14 June 2018
Location: Xavier's School, Westchester, New York
Synopsis: X-23 goes fishing and comes up with lunch and a fellow new student.
Cast of Characters: X-23, Elixir




X-23 has posed:
The lake is quiet, which makes it a good place for Laura. It's been a fairly short time since Jean's little Team Mom act, and it's left the teenager in an uncomfortable, awkward place. The house has too many people, too many scents, and too many sounds. Out here is quieter, at least. More peaceful. She's crouched at the side of the water, idly watching the ripples.

Elixir has posed:
Josh walked along the path toward the lake from the mansion turned school. It was hard to believe that 24 hours ago he was under a bridge with nowhere to go, or that he had almost gone off the top of that same bridge. Now here he was, walking the grounds of a private school with Emma Frost backing him.

Lost in thought, Josh almost did not notice the teenage girl by the water. As soon as he does something strikes him as odd, out of place, though he cannot put his finger on it. He watches her for a moment.

Josh walks toward her, one hand in the pocket of his skinny jeans, looking for all the world like any suburban youth anywhere. "Hey, you okay?" he asks as he approaches.

X-23 has posed:
She smells him before she sees him, or hears him. But her senses are keen enough that she knows he's coming long before he gets close enough. "Fine." she lies. Excessive words aren't her forte. "Watching."

Elixir has posed:
The clipped reply is odd, and Josh is not sure what to make of it. He keeps walking over and glances at the water, trying to see what she is watching.

"Uh, watching what? Are there fish?" he asks.

X-23 has posed:
"There are." The girl answers, pointing with a finger. Probably nothing visible to someone without enhanced senses, but there is, indeed, a fish in the water, and she is pointing at it. She stands, turning to look Josh over. Doesn't say anything, which is still a little offputting, but he clearly has her undivided attention now.

Elixir has posed:
Josh does not see anything in the water from where he is, and he stops when she stands. He feels uncomfortable under the sudden change of attention and silence.

"My name's Josh," he offers awkwardly when she does not say anything. "I'm new here. You?"

X-23 has posed:
She thinks a moment. She has a name now. And yet, oddly, she feels...possessive of that. It's /hers/. Not to be given out lightly. So instead she gives the designation she's used for virtually all her life. "X-23." she states simply. "I am also new here."

Elixir has posed:
"X-23..." Josh says, his brow creasing. "That's... Different. Do people just call you X?" he asks, curiously. "Where'd you come from? I'm from, well, nowhere now, I guess. Got kicked out for being, you know, a mutant."

X-23 has posed:
"No. That would be stupid." Tact; not her strong suit. "I am called X-23. I am..." she hesitates. "From up north." SO helpful she is. "I escaped."

Elixir has posed:
"Oh... I'm sorry. I'm getting that it was probably pretty bad," Josh says, getting the distinct feeling this girl is messed up. "This place seems alright, at least. They're pretty nice here. I think they really want to help. It's weird."

X-23 has posed:
Boy, is that an understatement. The brunette girl nods. "The one with the red hair. Jean. She wants to help. Even if she's touchy." Laura says, looking back to Josh. "Mother said they'd help."

Elixir has posed:
Josh chuckles a bit. "Jean.... Like Ms. Grey? I haven't met her yet. But I know who you mean. If she's like the other staff, then she's probably alright. They're real do-gooders, like in movies. It's.... Well, different. So your mom sent here? To learn more about your," he pauses for a moment remembering the words Ms. Frost used. "About your gifts?"

X-23 has posed:
That gets a little bit of a snort. "No. I know how to use my gifts." It's everything ELSE she doesn't know. Like how to be a person, and not a Weapon. "She sent me here to be safe." Pause. "What are movies?"

Elixir has posed:
Josh blinks, not sure he heard right.

"What are... What do you mean? Movies. You know, films, like in the theatre and on DVD," he says with a confused frown.

X-23 has posed:
The brunette shakes her head. "I don't know that." There were at least four words in there that aren't in her personal dictionary. Needless to say, the Weapon X project didn't make showing movies to their little assassin any kind of priority.

Elixir has posed:
"Whoa...." Josh says when it sinks in that she is not kidding. In fact, it is not at all clear if she is capable of kidding. "When you said up north, you didn't mean the Bronx, did you. Did you escape from the Scientologists or something?"

X-23 has posed:
She hesitates again. The project and its secrecy have been paramount to her for most of her life. But they're supposed to be the bad guys now. That means she should be able to tell people?

It turns into a fairly long silence, as she tries to work it out inwardly. Finally, she shakes her head. "It was a secret facility." She can say that much. "It's where I lived."

Elixir has posed:
Josh puts his other hand in his pocket and his look softens. "I'm really sorry," he says, not even faintly grasping what kind of world this girl could have come from. Wherever it was, it was about as far from Queens as the moon. "I, uh, I guess this is all really new for you then," he says gently.

X-23 has posed:
"Why?" She asks, honestly confused why he'd be sorry. "And it is very new. This is my first time being out, except when I was on missions."

Elixir has posed:
"Missions? What kind of missions do they send teenage girls on where you're from?" he asks, completely dumbfounded by her response. "So you've never been to school, or the mall, or anywhere... Normal?"

X-23 has posed:
She answers it as completely innocently as only someone with her warped upbringing can. "Assassination." The latter questions get vaguely confused looks, before she finally adds "I'm at school. This is a school." Jean told her that.

Elixir has posed:
Josh's jaw drops.

"A.... Holy shit," he says and takes a step back without thinking. "That's messed up," he says and looks around to make sure nobody else overheard her. "Uh, yeah, this is a school, alright." Josh runs a hand through his hair.

"X-23, maybe don't just tell people about your missions. It'll probably scare a lot of people," he says. "And I think you're gonna have a hard enough time making friends. Look, did they show you anything yet? Like where to eat?"

X-23 has posed:
She frowns a little. "All right?" she asks "And Jean said there was food inside. But inside is loud and there are lots of people there."

She's not used to being around people. And with her senses, what other people take as normal is a horrific melange of sensations for her.

"But I am hungry. I was debating catching a fish."

Elixir has posed:
Despite himself Josh laughs. "A fish? I think they're just for decoration, X-23. No, look, if you're hungry but you don't wanna go inside, I'll go get you something to eat and bring it here, okay?"

X-23 has posed:
She thinks about it a moment. "I suppose I am going to have to go inside at some point. I will go with you if you show me where the food is." Hierarchy of needs; food's up there. Then, after a moment's pause, she feels like she should trade something for the food. "You can call me Laura." she offers.

Elixir has posed:
"Laura? Yeah, sure, that's way better than X-23," Josh says, with some relief. "Come on, let's get you something to eat, Laura."