9412/On That Note....

On That Note....
Date of Scene:	03 October 2019
Location:	Shannon's Room (East Halls), Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Shannon and Andrea talk about music, love, and meeting their heroes. Plans for a shopping trip are afoot!
Cast of Characters:	Nightingale, Rage

---

Nightingale has posed:
     It's early morning, well before classes, and Shannon's just come back from a three-mile run. It didn't seem right, going running without Bean there, but he was recovering from a difficult Danger Room session and had declined healing. That was particularly frustrating, so after a shower and getting properly dressed for the day, she sits down at her piano to shift her focus to music. Something particularly tricky this morning, maybe, something that would take most of her concentration to play successfully. She keeps the volume decently low, so as not to wake anyone else up, but her dorm room door is ajar, and soft, jazzy notes float out into the hallway....

Rage has posed:
The sound of music catches Andrea's attention as she walks down the hallway dressed in a bathrobe with a towel flung over her shoulder. Slowing down in front of Shannon's room, she nudges the door open a bit and peeks inside curiously.

Nightingale has posed:
     If Andrea is a science fiction buff at all, she just might recognize a classic theme from Star Wars--the Cantina band. Oh, there are one or two missed notes here and there, but Shannon's fingers mostly manage to dance over the keys. Mostly. Considering they are a little bit shorter than some pianist's, it's not too terrible a rendition. She has to stop and rub her hands a little bit, frowning. How had she managed to get so far out of practice?

Rage has posed:
"Hey Shannon. Didn't know you liked Star Wars. That's the Cantina song, right? It's iconic." Andrea leans against the doorframe as she gives a wider smile. "My parents made me watch Star Wars all the time. I always wanted to be Princess Leia. She reminds me of my mother, all heroic and badass while still being super pretty. You're really good by the way."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon turns a little red and smiles sheepishly. "But badly out of practice. I used to be able to go into that song cold without missing a note. It's also been a little harder since the last major healing I did. Hands really took a beating. They're pretty much healed, just get stiff a little more easily. That'll probably go away with time." She tilts her head and chuckles a little bit. "Yeah, I can see you as heroic and badass. I'll get there one day. Somehow."

Rage has posed:
Shrugging her shoulders upwards, Andrea says, "I'm only heroic when I need to be. I just care a lot about my friends and I don't like to see them in danger." Tucking some hair back behind her ear, she offers up a smile. "I use hand weights and squeeze balls to keep my fingers limber and worked out. I know the piano and guitar life and it can get rough if you practice for hours and hours. I also take a lot of Vitamin A and Vitamin D. If you want some hand cream, I have a really nice one that smells like cotton candy."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon laughs, and raises her eyebrows. "I might look for some of those Chinese meditation balls, they're supposed to be very good for exercising the hands too. Very close to the motions you need for piano. What would the vitamin A and D do?" She motions to the chairs by the fireplace if Andrea wants to sit, smiling a bit. "Someone pretty wise said 'Sometimes folks in this line of business come back, and sometimes they don't. That no matter how hard we want someone to come back we can't control who will or when they will come back. We can't count on them coming back, but somewhere in the back of our minds we hope that somehow some day they might. And sometimes they do, but alot of times they don't.' Or something pretty close to that. Danger is part of what we do. Best we can do is share in the danger, maybe give each other the best chance we can of coming home."

Rage has posed:
"Vitamin D is important for your bones and can help relieve joint pain. Vitamin A is good for your skin and can help your skin retain moisture." Andrea takes a seat in a chair, tucking her robe down a bit as she does. "Did you see the fliers I put up for Glee Club? If you wanna join, that'd be cool. I know it's sorta a dorky club but I figure maybe we could use some laughs and happy times around here with all the killer robots thing going on outside. Music can heal the soul."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon's voice goes very quiet, terse, and tense. "I gave up on music as a career the day my change happened, and I got a small taste of just how cruel people could be... people you believed to be friends for a lifetime... to mutants. Maybe it was mild, compared to some. But it was enough." The room goes deathly quiet for a few long minutes, with only the sound of breathing, and the rest of the mansion waking up to break the silence. Her expression relaxes, and she lets out a short, quick laugh. "You know... as much as I'm pissed at him for tricking me into that major healing... the same person didn't want to give up on their dreams. Why should I?" Lessons could come from the most unexpected of sources. "Just... how can I balance that with healing and medicine now?"

Rage has posed:
"Don't think of it as a career, think of it as an afternoon to spend with friends coming up with songs and dancing about and having a good time. Glee Club at normal schools is super competitive and such, but here at Xavier's? Who are we competiting with? No one. It's just fun and if you can't make it every week, it's no big deal. I just figured it'd be a nice afternoon to give some students a voice, or to maybe find a new talent or appreciation of music. Also, maybe make some new friends." Andrea admits sheepishly as she rubs the back of her neck. "But maybe you'll find your groove again as well. You could be a singing nurse." She teases.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon chuckles, and shrugs. "Maybe. The piano practice would keep my hands limber for battle and for healing. What days and times will the club be meeting?"

Rage has posed:
"I think it's flexible. I have three-thirty on Friday's but we can even do the weekends or another day if it doesn't work. I figure if I put it at the end of the week after classes, no one has to freak out about homework." Andrea says as she tucks her hair back again behind her ear. "The music room has amazing acoustics by the way and it sounds great. Mason and I used to record music together in there." She purses her lips together. "I still haven't released our duet to my label yet. I was supposed to, but I kinda .. didn't."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon winces a little bit at mention of the music room. "Funny. That's where I met him." She smiles some, and tilts her head. "Some things... just kind of remain private. Things you did with someone special. That's fine, everyone has those things. She purses her lips for a few moments, then lets out an oath in German. "Fridays may not work too well for me, I signed on to study with Logan around that time. But it sounds like you're pretty flexible about scheduling so something's bound to work out."

Rage has posed:
"He just hated the song, that's all. Said it's too 'generic' and it has that repeating chord he /hates/ so much. It was a day that I really put a lot into that song and he just made me feel like I sucked. I know he has his own rebellious style, but just the way he says things." Andrea thumbs her phone a bit as she flicks the screen on, pulling the song up but not pressing play. "This song literally would go platinum. This is the kinda song that would blow the charts up. It's /so/ good. He sounds so good too. The piano he played on it was amazing. But he just hates the song and I don't want to put something out there he doesn't respect, you know?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods. "Then even though you're not with him, I'd respect that. It's one of those things that'll remind you of other times. Hell, I know there's songs it'll take a long time for me to ever hear or play again, if we don't work out." She smiles some and chuckles. "You know, for someone who took a hard pass on talks concerning him, he sure seems to be coming up a lot."

Rage has posed:
"Song isn't about he and I. It's just a generic pop song that our labels threw in our lap and wanted us to do something together. Create a media frenzy. I was just excited to do something with him again, like the old days at Disney." Turning the phone about in her hands, Andrea lets out a soft huff under her breath. "I'm a millionaire, it's not like I need the money and I already have a million awards at home. But this song meant a lot to me. Just the making of it, really." She slides her finger back and forth along the song, hovering over the delete button, before just closing her app. "I have no one to talk to about him. I guess. I don't wanna dump teenage wastelands on a counselor. I dunno. My bad." She says as she stands up and smooths down her robe.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon gets up and goes over to Andrea, reaching out to gingerly touch her hand. "Hey... I'm sorry. That wasn't meant to come out harsh. It's just I'm trying to avoid the subject because you were pretty clear about not wanting to talk about it, and it's a little confusing. Please, you don't have to go."

Rage has posed:
"I don't have a lot of girlfriends here. Most of my friends have been guys, outside of Laura, and she's a lot like Sam. Created to be a weapon with claws and stabby stab everything. Funny enough, she's been my best friend, but she kinda .. graduated out of the New Mutants and now she does other stuff, so I don't see her anymore. Not that talking about this with her woulda helped. She'd tell me to get over it, then she'd throw me in the Danger Room and we'd take turns going at it with monsters from hell or something to work it out." Andrea says as she bobs a bit on her feet with a sigh. "There's not a lot of girly girls around here for me to hook up with. There's no cheerleading team for me to join. We don't even have sports teams here for the obvious reasons. Outside of the school I'm one of the most popular people in the world to strangers, but inside here I am just the girl who can turn into a werewolf and I guess it's a challenge for me to find people I can connect and be normal with outside of putting on fashionable spandex and training in combat. I guess Glee Club is just a way for me to try and normalize my experience here. Maybe try and be a girl instead of an activist or a popstar or a superhero. Just for an hour a week."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon reaches out and pulls Andrea in for a hug. "Being lonely sucks. Sometimes, even with your own family there, you can be all by yourself. When my change happened, sure, my family loved and supported me. They still do. But this is something they can never really understand, no matter how badly they want to." She extends her wings to their full span by way of illustrating her point. "There were a lot of long nights just feeling very, very alone. Only had one hero I could really look up to, and hell, that did a lot to get me through those times. Told him about it once. That was something else. But friends my own age? Those all turned away from me when the change happened. So when it's staring me in the face... I choke. I don't know what to do with it."

Rage has posed:
Leaning into her, Andrea hugs her back. "I was lucky to have a supportive family. My mother is the strongest person in the world. She's served three tours and came back with bullets in her. My dad is a surgeon and he taught me how to love everyone around me, to always try my best to be a good person. I got lucky. I know a lot of others in my shoes aren't." Letting her go, she rubs at her shoulder. "I always looked up to Dazzler. I have every album, even her underground stuff. I would dress up like her and sing her songs and dance around my living room. I hope to meet her one day. She's my hero." She shifts her jaw a bit and gives her a nudge. "You won't choke though, not while we're teammates. I won't let you choke. I'll be there to pick you right up. Long as you do the same for me." She says with a genuine smile.

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon smiles wide and steps back. "I hope you get to meet your hero one day. I was fortunate enough to meet mine, and I hope one day to have the privelege of calling them a friend." She laughs a bit, and grins. "Yeah, we've got to pick each other up. Even when we make mistakes that are, as it was put to me, a little bigger than tripping over your own feet on the sidewalk." She tilts her head to one side, and smiles. "My list of heroes has gotten a lot longer since coming here. Most of them are right here in this school. And you know, if you really want to meet Dazzler, why not just open your mouth and say something? You've got more moxie than I'll ever have. It took me literally running into mine coming out of the music store in Salem Center to say hi."

Rage has posed:
"Well, I could, I have the connections. I can just .. ask anyone here since she rolled with the staff for a bit. I can also just pick up the phone and call, but.. I don't know. I want to be .. ready.. to meet her." Andrea says as she lets out a breath. "I want to .. put a portfolio in front of her and be like.. Allison Blaire, I love you. You put me on this path and I accomplished it. I made a difference. You inspired me. Then I'll break down and cry and ruin my makeup. But I want to do it when I have something to show her. I don't know.. maybe I'm kinda scared too she'll just think I'm annoying. Ya'know, like.. Madonna meeting Britney Spears or something." She says with a soft laugh. "I will fan boy all over her, it'll be embarrassing."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon laughs and turns bright red. "Do you know how close I came to going all fangirl over Captain Rogers when I ran into him? Took just about everything I had to not let my jaw drop to the ground right then and there. But I kept thinking, guy probably deals enough with that BS, doesn't need it from me, too. Just kept it real. Kept it /normal/. Turned out to be one of the nicest people you could ever want to meet. And eventually, I did get to tell him how he helped without even knowing it. Thought it'd annoy or embarrass him. But it didn't. Who knows, if and when you get to meet Dazzler, you can put that portfolio in front of her and tell her the same thing. She puts her pants on one leg at a time too, you know. So do all of us."

Rage has posed:
"Oh my God, I remember when I met Captain America. Hooooly crap his eyes are /amazing/. I got to perform at Tony Stark's birthday party and he had all the Avengers there. He walks in and my jaw hit the ground. He is /so/ gorgeous. I never had a crush on him before, but I think I fell in love and found myself imagining our wedding or something." Andrea says as she flips a hand upwards with a laugh. "Then I had to sing in front of the Avengers. That was incredible. But yeah, I think he's everyone's hero. He is literally the best person in the world."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods. "Yeah, and on top of all that, he just keeps it /real/. Right after the protest that got Daniel killed... I was pretty messed up. Just kept thinking 'WHY'. Why does there have to be so much hate. Didn't know if he'd seen the broadcast, and I didn't really know too many to vent to then. I fired off a message about the broadcast, and just asked 'WHY'. Never asked for anything. But got one hell of an answer anyways when he showed up a few days later. I still think of that a lot. Talked about a lot of things, a lot of things made some sense, and... knowing he's been in a lot of the same places we're going through now, it helped a lot. Never really talked about that outright to anyone. Maybe passed on some of the things he said but never said where it came from. Bad enough I must sound like a fangirl right now." She laughs a little bit, shaking her head. "Don't be afraid to talk to your hero. You just may be surprised at how it turns out."

Rage has posed:
"It's okay to fan girl over Captain America and his dream butt." Andrea grins at her with a giggle. "I'm glad you got a chance to meet him and talk. That is so cool. I haven't talked to him yet outside of a flubbed hello and a long sip of cold water. I only briefly talked to Tony Stark after my performance and then he got whisked away and I had to hang out in a VIP area with other celebrities. I didn't get a lot of Avenger face time." She pulls her hair up behind her, then retightens the sash of her robe. "Got plans today?"

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon bursts out giggling. "Sheesh, what is it with you and dream butts? I was just happy to meet someone who turned out to be pretty freaking awesome and down to earth." She smiles wider still. "And I'm even more fortunate that someone like that decided to look at me like a little sister and call me family. Yes, I'm talking about Cannonball this time. He's another one who's got his head on straight, keeps it real, and is super-cool and awesome, and funny, and seriously big-hearted. You won't believe all the talks we've had about a bunch of different things since coming here, and well, I'm just really glad he sort of adopted me." She cracks her neck slightly, and glances at her phone. "I hadn't really thought that far ahead, besides classes. What about you?"

Rage has posed:
"He has /America's/ ass, Shannon." Andrea laughs. "I mean seriously. Don't even tell me you didn't peek. Captain America is genetically designed to be the perfect man, from those blue eyes to his dream butt. But, I can believe that about Sam. He's a good guy. We've had a ton of talks also. He genuinely cares about the kids and it makes it easy to identify with him. Though I think he and I have a bit more of a tactical relationship. We talk a lot about work. Strategies and the such. But sometimes we sneak in something here and there when he knows I need a friend." Glancing down at her phone, she says, "I just need to shower and get some food in me, then I dunno, I was thinking of going shopping if you wanna come."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon laughs and grins. "I actually didn't peek, believe it or not. And he wasn't always perfect, you know. In point of fact... I believe the term he used when I asked what things were like for him before taking up the shield... you know, when he was the little guy in the fight, kind of like we are now... was something along the lines of 'a bag of bird bones who didn't know when to stand down'." She bursts out giggling, shaking her head. "Kind of hard to picture that now, and I said as much to his face. It's kind of nice to know the top dogs have been where you are now, you know? But you and he seem to sound a lot alike on one point. 'Make a stand, but do it with the school. Make sure you're not alone.' Sam's said very similar things to me as well."

Shopping. Perhaps the one thing that Shannon seems to have in common with a /normal/ teenager. Although her tastes in shopping are well... interesting. She peers over at her sewing machine, then the bookshelf with the fabrics and sewing sundries, and purses her lips. "Sure, why not? I've got to make a few new tunic tops anyways, maybe find some new jeans or leggings to go with them. I love dresses but flying with them just isn't /decent/. You show off everything you shouldn't."

Rage has posed:
"I can't ever imagine Steve Rogers as skinny and a bag of bones. I thought he was just some dude who worked out a lot and joined the Avengers. I don't actually pay a lot of attention to anyone's back story. I just see them on the news blowing up aliens and fighting bad guys. I have no clue who does what or when. But, I can tell you everything about Taylor Swift's workout regiment. That girl has killer abs in her thirties." Andrea smiles and heads for the door. "I'll let my bodyguard know to pull the car up. It's a bulletproof BMW. Black. Real sexy. We'll have James form an in and out strategy with the team. I'm dying for some vintage flare jeans."

Nightingale has posed:
Shannon nods, and grins. "Sounds good. There should be some fabric and craft supply stores in the area, too. Maybe we could find some fabric you like, and I could make you a tunic top to go with those jeans. I'd have to take your measurements and all. But those are dead simple to make. I'm still learning the more complicated stuff, but knowing how to sew is just practical when you have wings."