| Coming to Xavier's |
| Summary: | Serenity finally calls for a ride out to Xavier's. Doug shows her a guest room and the conservatory. After cleaning up, she puts herself in the Conservatory and stays there. |
| Date: | 2016-08-18 |
| Related: | NA |
| NPCs: | None |
| Scene Runner: | NA |
| Social/Plot: | Social |
| Players: |
 .. .. .. |
Evening is coming on when the phone number that is on the card given t Serenity when she was visited by Jean and Rogue begins to ring.'
Polaris picks up and answers after a couple rings. "Hello, Xavier Academy, this is Polaris speaking." She says into the mouth piece in a chipper tone.
The young woman on the other end of the line says, "Two women came to find me while I was singing in Central Park a little while back. They gave me this card and said if I needed it I could get transportation. They wanted me to come out and see the school." She might be trying to speak quietly so she's not overheard.
"Yeah, of course. When abouts did you want to come see the school?" Polaris asks and there is a rustling sound with a click like a pen. "Ok, name please."
There's a long hesitation at that question but finally she says, "Serenity. My name's Serenity. When can I get the ride?"
Polaris pauses for a moment. "Oh, you're Serenity? When did you want to come out? Are you safe?"
There's another pause. "Maybe. I'm in the park. It can get dicey after dark. I think I'm ready if that's okay. Or I can go find a hole for the night and you can find me tomorrow."
Polaris smiles as she speaks. "Oh, it's no trouble, we can put you up for the night in one of the spare dorms. Central Park? We'll roll out. Be looking for a woman with green hair-that's me."
"Right. I'll be near the Met. It's safer there." Serenity answers as she gets up to head over to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
"The Met? You got it!" Polaris confirms.
The phone clicks off as Serenity hangs up to focus as she has to skirt around the area of an impending conflict between two gang members.
About 70 minutes later…
In the time since the phone call, Serenity has made her way to the steps of the Met on the east side of the park. She is sitting on the steps of said museum in the pool of light from one of the lights of the museum.
After getting texted by Polaris, Doug meets the green haired mutant in the garage at Xavier's checking that the black Ford Focus is fully charged and presentable for a new guest.
They take the drive into the city discussing Serenity in passing (has been homeless for a few years, ran away from a foster home, is eighteen, and is a very reserved and somewhat skittish young woman is the general summary) and small talk. Once they have parked the car they walk to the Met. As they approach, Doug indicates Serenity without pointing so that Lorna knows who they are approaching before they are on top of the girl.
Looking around a little, Lorna is dressed nice, a white tee and jeans, Her hair uncovered so she's recognizable. "At least it's not too bad out. The weather has been so dicey." She comments lightly, just to fill the air as they approach the stairs of the MET.
Serenity has her arms curled around her legs as she waits for them. When she sees the green hair coming, she uncurls herself and starts down the steps. Doug gets a wary look though.
Doug stopped a bit further away from Serenity than Lorna did. Two steps to be precise. He nods to her at the wary look and says, ":Good evening Serenity. This is Lorna D-.. sorry, Lorna Summers actually.:" Her discomfort at his presence seems to affect him as he looks at the ground nervously for a moment before saying, ":Again, I'm sorry if my previous actions caused you duress. I only meant to increase the ability of Mr. Murdock's to assist you.:"
"Hello Serenity, we spoke on the phone. Doug and I are going to give you a ride to the school, if you're up to it we can give you a tour-but it can always wait for morning if you'd prefer a shower and a soft bed for the night first." She offers and extends a hand to shake one of Serenity's.
Serenity frowns and keeps her hands back, "Please don't be offended if I don't shake. I haven't washed my hands in a while. I don't think it's good if I do."
Doug frowns slightly and says, ":Lorna's a geologist, a little dirt won't hurt her Serenity,:" in an attempt to be a little playful as well as informative.
"Well, I have a degree in masters in Geo physics. The academy bites into actual time doing field studies." Lorna points out to Doug and take her hand back. "Not a problem, one of my good friends isn't a toucher." She offers and looks at Doug. "So, Doug's driving, you want shot gun or the back?" she asks Serenity with an encouraging smile.
Serenity settles her guitar on her back in preparation for walking, "I don't mind sitting in the back. I haven't been in a car in a while."
":You both could sit in back, I don't mind playing chauffeur if necessary,:" Doug says reaching behind him and, as if pulling it from his back pocket, he produces a proper black chauffeur cap as an extension of his hand which he transfers to the top of his head as he puts it on with a jaunty tilt.
":Do we need to pick up anything else before we go?:" he asks both women, waiting to let them take the lead on returning to the car or not.
Shaking her head at Doug, Lorna nods. "Car's this way. If you haven't been in one for a while the front might not be a bad idea, less motion sickness." She tells Serenity and slides her hands into her pockets. "You got anything else to grab? We don't mind driving somewhere else too."
Serenity shakes her head as she moves to follow them, "I do not get motion sickness. I just haven't been in one since I got back to New York. I don't have anything but my guitar so there's nowhere to go."
("So much for picking up any personal items for her,") Doug thinks 'out loud' in his mind space. ("Do you have a plan two, sir?") urRamsey asks his primary. Doug smiles outwardly as he says, ("Of course I do,") he says in reply.
As they reach the car Doug sends a signal to the car to unlock the doors with no sign of a keyless entry fob in his hands and opens the passenger doors, back first then front also. ":Do you have a preference for music for the drive, Serenity?:" he asks their guest.
"Show off, I could have done it from the stairs." Lorna says to Doug and asides to Serenity. "I'm metal-kinetic, and control electro magnetism. Doug's way is just fancier." She sighs and hops in the passenger seat, letting Serenity take the back like she'd said. "Which isn't to say you have to share, but I could feel the car, Doug beat me to it."
Serenity manages a little smile, "I never say no to music. Music is one of the truly good things in life." She climbs into the car, "I'm really not sure. He said I was a mutant. Matt Murdock agreed with him so I suppose they think it's my voices."
Doug closes the doors for his companions then walks around to the driver's seat. After retrieving the key from where he stored it in his hand he starts the car and says, ":Yankovic, 80s or Classical would be my preference as a starting point,:" before asking, ":What convinced Mr. Murdock?:" of Serenity and, as an aside to Lorna, he says, ":When I left it was still only my word. I emulated a portable Cerebro, so I'm certain of it.:"
"Oh, she popped up on the mutant channel?" Lorna asks and looks at Serenity. "Was your ability brought on by extreme stress or puberty?" It's a gentle question. "Mine manifested pretty young. I was lucky my father managed to suppress it until my teens." She tells the girl, leaving out the who. If she doesn't know there's no reason to spook her. "Yankovic? Come on, got anything rockier?" She asks and looks to Serenity. "Its your call-for the music. Don't let him try that Weird Al stuff, he probably thinks he's like Ozzy here." She teases Doug with a light swat at his arm.
Serenity shrugs at Doug. "I can listen to anything. I just ask that you stay away from violent lyrics please." She chews her lip for a moment then says, "I did an impression of him. The he said you were probably right. I'm not sure what it was that convinced him. It's not like other people cannot do impressions." She shrugs at Lorna. "I can't remember a time when I couldn't do voices like that."
As Doug drives out of the parking garage and guides the car towards I-87 along Madison Avenue he connects to the car's wifi and starts with Meredith Brooks' "Bitch" as the first song of the ride.
":She thinks I'm gullible because on my third day here I wasn't sure if she'd heard of Ray Bradbury, Serenity. She hasn't let up since,:" he says this with humor in his strange voice showing there's no hard feelings.
("Ask if she can do you, cause that would be very interesting, sir,") urRamsey urges his primary in their shared mindspace. Agreeing with his fork, Doug does exactly that. ":Can you mimic my voice?:"
"I thought you were gullible before-to be fair." Lorna points out and nods to Serenity. "I used to dye my hair brown, it's always been green." She tells her and shrugs. "Not too many of us have our powers pre-puberty, the ones that do tend to be stronger I've noticed." She adds and looks at Doug, curious to see what the girl does.
Serenity opens her mouth to sing along then closes it again at Doug's question. She thinks a long moment then says, "I honestly don't know. Your voice is strange."
":To be honest,:" Doug says to Lorna as he drives along the streets of New York, ":I was when I was younger and can't swear to not be anymore.:"
As Doug speaks to Lorna he begins placing a call to the Institute's clinic in the back of his mind.
":That it is, I tried mimicking human vocal cords and the results of that were even stranger than this actually, if you can imagine that.:"
When his call is answered by someone at the school Doug identifies himself and asks her if she could run an errand for him…
"It's alright, I won't let anyone else fleece you." Lorna tells Doug and looks at Serenity. "Doug's complicated." She offers and smiles. "Feel free to sing along, there's plenty of time to explore the reach of your abilities."
Serenity thinks a moment then begins to sing along with Meredith Brooks. Except it's not her own voice. It's Doug singing along with Meredith in the back seat, right down to that odd mechanical distortion he has.
("WOW!") urRamsey says in Doug's mindspace.
":That's amazing,:" Doug says as he turns onto I-87 via the Triboro Bridge in Queens.
Inside his mind Doug explains that their guest will need some clothes, undergarments likely even, and that she appears to be a close fit to Illyana in size. Sharon tells Doug she'll send Tom out for personal items including a toothbrush and collect some clothes for Serenity to pick from before then end the call.
After "Bitch" ends Doug says, ":Okay the first was for you Lorna,:" he winks at her to show he's trying to be playful. ":Next one is for me…:"
Weird Al's "White and Nerdy" starts up right after he says that.
"What?" Lorna groans and rolls her eyes up to the ceiling of the car. "That's a great ability Serenity." She tells the girl and tries to tune out Weird Al because it hurts her heart. So painful.
Serenity cannot help laughing at the choice of songs but this too she sings along with, continuing in Doug's voice for a bit. She stops singing to say, "It takes a little time to be able to do someone's voice properly."
Doug actually sings along with the song and Serenity. With his ability to control the modulation of his voice it isn't bad, but still doesn't match the songbird in the back seat. After Yankovic's song ends he starts up AC/DC's "Back in Black."
As the new song begins he says, ":You can be surprised how useful a subtle power like that can be. Before I became the being I am now my mutant power was just omnilingualism. So I could ask anyone where the bathroom was after only a few minutes of listening to them talk basically.:" He pauses a moment and says, ":Actually saved my friends' and my lives a few times with it though.:"
Nodding, Lorna nods her head to the beat and turns up the song a little. "Doug's not wrong. A lot of places people like Havok and I are useless because we can be more destructive as powers go-Havok and Cyclops especially." She tells the girl over the music.
Serenity murmurs, "I don't know how much use it is for me to be able to imitate people's voices. It just annoys them unless I am using it to sing like Patsy Cline which people tend to like."
As the drive progresses Doug proceeds onto Kansas' "Carry On Wayward Son"
Before addressing Serenity's comment, Doug asks his fellow X-Man, ":More to your liking Lorna?:" and then he says, ":I can think of some circumstances where it would be wonderful… like when you know the pass phrase but it is keyed to a vocal pattern also maybe?:"
"Mmmn, it's not the Phoenix force, but our strength has always been that we rely on each other's specific abilities to get the job done-but that's…that has nothing to do with the school. The school is just a school." Lorna nods and looks relieved. "So much better. I don't know how you drive to parodies, they get so old."
The rest of the drive was a pleasant evening drive though the New York Country Side to "Under the Bridge", "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Life is a Highway", "Freefallin'" and of course "I'm Gonna Be (500 miles)" (Doug also tossed in "I Think I'm a Clone Now" as he drove through Salem Center).
Serenity keeps her guitar close as she looks around. "This place is huge." She takes a deep breath and lets it out silently. "I never finished the 8th grade so I don't have a diploma."
":This isn't the original mansion,:" Doug explains to Serenity after her comment as they drive down the estate drive to the garage. ":There's been at least three buildings here in the past… what would you say Lorna, decade or so?:"
"Like…fifteen years. We make it half a decade before someone tries to invade and destroy!" Lorna says and makes a face. She's been one of them under certain influences. "It's never a dull moment here." She assures Serenity. "There are quiet places, like the stables, but also people enough to be social if you're feeling the need to."
Serenity chews her lip and mutters, "Nowhere's quiet in New York. That will be strange to have quiet." She doesn't move, instead looking at the school warily. "Do you happen to have a piano? I haven't been near a piano in a long time."
":Actually, yes. There's a grand piano along with a harp and other instruments in the Conservatory,:" Doug says as they reach the garage and he parks the car along side a number of other vehicles, including a vintage Rolls-Royce Phantom and a veritable fleet of motorcycles.
"How we manage to replace those I never know." Lorna shakes her head. "Did you want to go to the conservatory first off then?" she wonders and looks at Doug. "I should check in with Havok-if you want to show her?" She asks him seeing they're getting along alright.
Serenity glances at Doug as though unsure how she feels about being left alone with him before finally nodding, "I would love to see the conservatory."
Doug does not offer Serenity his arm, he doesn't believe she'd be comfortable with that. Instead he says, ":Right this way then,:" and leads the way out of the garage.
Serenity follows Doug out of the garage. Now that they are in a quiet place, it is more obvious just how silent Serenity is when she moves. She judges her weight precisely so that even if she makes a sound it is not one that she personally will hear.
":You might want to make some sound, Serenity,:" Doug says and then explains, ":Some of the residents are a bit jumpy.:" He then adds, ":Nice. Fundamentally at least. But jumpy.:"
He also explains, ":There are residential rooms in the administrative buildings to the north and south of the court yard and student dormitories at the east end of the Institute. Sharon Friedlander should have set up a guest room with you with some clothes you could change into after a shower also,:" as he continues on into the gathering hall.
Serenity chews her lip at that suggestion, "I don't though. Want to make sound that is. Not unless I have to or I'm performing. It's complicated."
":Okay,:" he says accepting this as a fact but says, ":Until you know who's who, if you see someone in a room you're about to enter I'd recommend announcing yourself,:" as he leads her into the Conservatory.
Serenity nods as she follows him into the conservatory. Despite having just said she does not like to make noise, the first thing she does in the conservatory is take in a deep breath and release a sigh of pleasure. She starts to move over to the piano then suddenly stops and looks down at herself in disgust and backs out to just inside the doorway. "Oh. I cannot be in here while I'm so filthy. I'll ruin something."
Doug smiles broadly and says, ":Lets get you to that guest room so you can bathe, brush your teeth and rest. I could bring you something from the kitchens also and you can just rest on the bed tonight. You'll have all the time you want in the conservatory later.:"
Serenity lets herself be shown to the guest room. As they go she begins to whisper directions from where she is back to the conservatory. She spends several hours in the guest room bathing thoroughly before she returns to the conservatory and sinks gratefully onto the bench at the grand piano. She briefly touches the keys in an almost reverent way then begins to play a wide array of classical music.
The scene fades to Pachelbel's "Canon in D" and other pieces.