A new arrival

[Wanda Maximoff]

((OOC: New thread, spins off from 100mtoanchorage.proboards98.com/index.cgi?board=forestbh&action=display&thread=1155059919&page=2#1156426965))

Wanda isn't sure what she was expecting. She knows very little about her father, that's true enough... close to nothing, really. But keeping company with young boys? She wouldn't have guessed it.

She tries to keep a straight face at the boy's reaction, but fails. "Well, you have the first part of the job reasonably well established, young man. That is, the opening the door. Very good. It is, however, customary to add a greeting of some sort. 'Good evening, ma'am.' is a good, solid, traditional one. It's difficult to go wrong with it. 'Hello' is moderately acceptable. Offering me refreshments of some kind would be a pleasant touch.

"Staring at my breasts, however, while also traditional in its own way, is not really the done thing. Though I must say, the awe-struck tongue-tied reception is flattering. If you're nice I may let you touch them later. For now, however, if you'll announce to Magnus that his daughter is here to see him?"

[Pyro]

If dispelling the whole ‘awe-struck tongue-tied’ thing is his aim, it’s not really going too well for the young Fire Starter. Because aside from the obvious – and dammit, yes, it’s still very distracting in spite of her words and his own squirming embarrassment at other, erm, squirming things… especially her ‘offer’, since what with him being so short and she not exactly poorly endowed those breasts are hardly easy to avoid noticing and more than enough to ensure that he'll play as near to 'nice' as he can– there’s a whole other kettle of fish this girl woman has just touched upon.

Which is just about enough to stun him out of silence, once he gets his head around her strange speech patterns (regal propriety not really being the main tone of the Brotherhood…). Enough even for him to ignore how she’s basically called him the doorman, which while probably technically accurate as far as recent Brotherhood activity goes (hell, it’s all he’s been doing, given how little call there seem to be for the resident arsonist) can’t help but irk. Because if she’s saying what he thinks she’s saying… that’s crazy. Really, really crazy.

No, couldn’t be. His name was Erik, right? Not Magnus. Definitely not. Nope. This woman was just… mistaken. Yes.

”Who’s Magnus” he sort-of replies, adding a quick ”ma’am?” on the end, since she seems to be something of a stickler for propriety (the slight sarcastic edge on his tone is, while unintentional, hard to miss and would probably come across as a little, well, uncouth, for those unaccustomed to his usual demeanour), and trying to keep his eyes on hers and not on other less elevated areas. Once he's started talking it gets... easier, sort of. Too easy, perhaps, since a more typical postscript slips out before he can really check it. "Because if he lives here... I'm not sure touching those is worth the world of pain your dear father'll probably inflict."

[Wanda Maximoff]

Wanda's mouth quirks a bit at the boy's discomfort.

"I assure you, young man, my 'dear father' has no interest in these," and she wriggles her chest in a practiced pose no woman actually the age she appears to be could have yet mastered, just for the entertainment value of watching him react, "beyond the purely pragmatic. He may control," she looks down at him regally for just a moment, rakes her gaze across his body before looking back into his eyes, "everything else in this facility but he gave up any right to control me when he abandoned my mother."

She wonders suddenly why she's sharing her life story with this uncouth boy. Surely she has not grown weak enough to need a confidante? Laughable. She is Wanda Maximoff, the most powerful Sintisa witch in the memory of the People, keeper of the Eleven Secret Names of the Fates. This boy, even if he has usurped her rightful place at her father's side (not, she reminds herself, that she has any desire to stand there herself... it is merely a matter of principle), is nevertheless hardly worthy of her consideration.

"On the other hand, you are wise to be cautious," she adds, taking a slow step towards the doorway, and then another. "The experience is, I've been told, transformative."

She wonders if he'll get out of her way and let her enter the building, or not. Either way she suspects the results will be educational.

[Pyro]

Um… what?

Great, now he’s confused on top of everything else. Not just on top; over and above. Because although he’s used to not quite knowing what’s going on this is a jolt of What the hell? which breaks through the general bewilderment he’s long since learnt to ignore. This time there’s no mistaking her meaning this time, and precious little way of wriggling out of what it implies short of declaring her insane… which he doesn’t want to do, because the thoughts he was having right up until she had to go and sour things (and, okay, is still having… just not as prominently) are sort of fucked up (… more so than the usual level of ‘sick and twisted’, at least).

Everything is fucked up, come to think of it. Magneto’s not allowed to have kids, not in Pyro’s version of things, certainly not kids he’s run out on (much as he hates admitting that he wants a guardian angel – because he’s long past the age where that sort of dependency was anything other than total weakness – Magneto is the one person out of those who’ve been trying to adopt him pretty much as long as he can remember who he can sort of see himself submitting to those sort of ties with, so finding out that he like everyone else ultimately failed his real children is not what he wants to hear) but it’s getting harder to ignore the possibility. There’s certainly something in her bearing that echoes Magneto’s majesty and presence, and…

Yes, this is insane. And whoever she is, he’d be mad not to feel threatened, because even if the claim is bunk she’s still a threat as long as he’s next to Magneto, and her mere physical presence is awesomely intense.

No way he’s moving yet, whoever he thinks she is. Not until he’s sure. ”Are you looking for Magneto?” he asks, looking at her sidelong, the dumb act painful and probably unnecessary but as good a way to find out where they stand as any.

[Wanda Maximoff]

Wanda sighs. This is the caliber of servant her father has been reduced to employing?

"Oh... is he referring to himself that way now? How... quaint. I had thought it was merely one of those tedious media things. Yes, dear... I'm looking for 'Magneto.' There are some things he and I have to discuss."

As she says it, she wonders if that's even true. She's been searching for him for some time now, ever since she recognized him on a television news broadcast, after his attempt to... well, whatever it was he was doing to the Statue of Liberty, she hadn't quite followed... but now that she's arrived at his doorstep she's not entirely certain why.

No matter. No doubt the words will come when needed.

Meanwhile, the boy is continuing to block the doorway, which is at the same time amusing and annoying. She suspects it's more that he hasn't thought of moving than than he actually intends to stand in her way, but either way it's rude. And while she could remove him forcefully, her intuition is that he can be useful in the long run.

She places both gloved arms deliberately on his shoulders, lacing her fingers together behind his head without quite touching it, keeping her eyes focused on his and seeming completely unaware of the proximity of his chin to her breasts.

"Now... is there someplace comfortable I can sit while you go get him? Perhaps with a cup of tea? Surely you people don't do all your important mutant-brotherhood business on your front porch, do you?"

[Pyro]

The way she’s enjoying playing this is pure Magneto showmanship, a side which doesn’t come out to play very often in the old man and in someone of such, erm, youth and vigour, is weirdly intense… an effect which does not diminish as she closes the distance between them. Even if she is mad – which he still can’t rule out of the equation, since how many people his age (as she appears to be near at least) would use ‘dear’ and ‘quaint’, or ask for a cup of tea? – she’s aware enough of what she’s doing to him, and seems to enjoy it. He’d admire the skill, having played that game himself often enough, if being on the receiving end didn’t keep distracting him.

Not letting her in doesn’t seem to be an option, though he’s not especially looking forward to breaking the news that Magneto’s a little… preoccupied. No doubt if she really is his daughter he’ll drop all that (Elliot is no doubt listening in – it amuses her to spy on his thoughts, he’s learnt fairly quickly, and the current peep-show-come-descent-into-madness would be irresistible to her – and should probably <tell Magneto his ‘daughter’ is here to see him>) but in the mean time it leaves something of a problem. He’s no expert on this weird etiquette she seems so hung up on… and doubts that she’ll keep feeding him hints if her temper is as short as Magneto’s can be when whatever protocol he’s attached to is broken.

Do they even have tea, given how disorganised things are? Do they have anything other than coffee and cheap beer? And why is he even thinking about these things when he should be asleep? Sigh. Life was meant to get easier now he was re-affiliated, wasn’t it?

”You’d be surprised” he responds to her question regarding the porch, the effort to keep his eyes elevated to hers reaching truly heroic proportions by now. It’s not quite casual conversation, but as near as he can manage, more to put himself at something like ease (though he hates ‘small talk’… the pretence of normality is reassuring. Sort of) than for her benefit except in (as he continues) to excuse the state of the house… which seems like something that should be done given how fixated on formality she appears to be. It makes sense to get on her good side, after all, if she is who she claims to be. He’s not planning on giving up his place on the inside just yet, ties of blood be damned. Spilled blood still counts for something, right?

”We’re, erm, not really prepared for visitors yet… Though you’re welcome to come in.” The last part is something of a formality – an unnecessary one, in his opinion, since she plainly doesn’t care whether he gives his permission or not – as is the next (though this one, at least, serves some purpose). ”Who should I say is here? Besides ‘his daughter’.”

[Wanda Maximoff]

Wanda smiles as she steps through the door, taking in the surroundings with an expression that gives away nothing, and spreads her cloak out on the least objectionable sitting surface before sitting down. She even crosses her legs demurely, the need for confounding the boy's thoughts having passed for the moment.

"Has he left so many children behind him in his travels that it is insufficient identification? Very well... you may tell him Wanda, daughter of Magda, has come for an accounting."

She observes the boy more carefully for a few moments. Nervous, certainly, and uncouth as well, but he must be possessed of some power to be among her father's footmen. It would be good to learn more about him.

Then she shrugs. "But such matters can wait. I've shared my name, young man... would you care to enlighten me as to yours? And the nature of your relationship with... 'Magneto'?"

[Pyro]

An accounting? Well, that can’t be good. He also notes it’s a ‘Slave Name’ she uses, suggesting she and daddy aren’t singing from the same hymn sheet. Either that, or she’s a flat-liner. Mentally he ‘updates’ Elliot – as far as he can be sure he’s updating her – before leaning on the wall opposite. Sitting would make him feel short again, and the temporary sense of height gives some welcome security (as does clicking the Zippo… a habit no amount of forced etiquette will ever stop)… besides, this way there are fewer distractions in his immediate eye line (and that is, he tells himself, a good thing).

”’Name’s…” He hesitates for a moment, wondering whether ‘John’ might be more appropriate, but since he’s representing the Brotherhood here and should underline how he’s sided with Magneto the other, his ‘real’ name, feels more appropriate. ”Pyro”

The question as to his role is also not especially easy to answer. Bobby’s snide taunts about him being little more than a Zippo himself are probably more accurate than he’ll ever admit, but there has to be more to it than that, right? A vague shrug and the words ”I’m.. useful to him, I guess.” are all she’ll get, in any case, because he’s not planning on getting into recent history. This is complicated enough.

[Wanda Maximoff]

((OOC: I guess we aren't actually in the forest anymore... hope that's OK.))

"'Pyro'? That's like 'Magneto', I suppose... not quite a proper name, is it?"

The response comes out of her mouth before she stops to think about it, and in retrospect she regrets it. At first she'd thought this whole fake-name business was some kind of childish game, but looking at 'Pyro's' expression as he names himself she realizes it's more like a ritual identity.

Which makes sense, given the sorts of things the Brotherhood does... at least, what she's gathered from the occasional news program. Raiding parties among the Sinta used ritual names, she remembers, and while a great deal of supernatural mystique attached to the practice it was really just a way to separate the acts they performed on those raids from their definitions of their everyday selves. They could turn off their consciences while on the raid, then resume their daily lives afterwards.

Which makes it interesting that 'Pyro' hesitates. It suggests he stands on the knife's edge, one foot in his everyday life and the other in the Brotherhood, not yet one thing or the other. It is bound to his habit with the lighter, as well... that much is clear, if only from the etymology of his ritual name.

His hesitation with respect to his role in Magnus' organization is also intriguing. He is clearly bound to Magnus (or to 'Magneto', at the very least) in ways she does not yet understand... but at the same time seems uncertain about it. Afraid of being abandoned, perhaps? Is abandoning children a habit of Magnus'?

All very interesting indeed, and worth exploring further. This boy may prove a source of more information about her father than she had, at first, supposed. Which makes her next order of business to recover from her thoughtless insult, and bind him to her further.

"I'm sorry Pyro. That was uncalled-for. It is your name within your Brotherhood, and you speak here with its voice, as is right and proper."

He doesn't sit down, she notes, and makes an obvious effort not to stare at her. She's come on too strong, she realizes, and intimidated him. She was expecting stronger opposition. So she allows herself to relax, adopt a more informal posture... less commanding, more vulnerable. She leans her arms on the back of the couch and slouches just a little, allowing his height advantage to increase marginally, allowing her legs to spread just a little... enough to be enticing without being obvious.

"We seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot, Pyro. I apologize for that. And if it makes you more comfortable, I will not use my birth-name in this place, or my father's. 'Magneto' he is... and you may address me as..." she hesitates in her turn, wondering how best to translate her title among her people. 'Priestess in Red', perhaps? No... the religious connotation would put Pyro off. 'Witch' is better. 'Red Witch' isn't quite right. 'Crimson Witch'? Ah... no. She has it now. "...the Scarlet Witch."

"But family re-acquaintance can wait, I think. Will you tell me something of yourself, Pyro, and the function you serve in this Brotherhood? I would be... appreciative." She smiles at him then, again, just enough to be enticing without being obvious. She begins to know this boy well enough to guess that coming on too strong will simply chase him off, but she suspects he is unable to resist a mysterious woman.

[Pyro]

”You sure? I’d be leaping at the chance to get to know…” Oops. He stops dead, having said too much already. Letting his guard down, now she seems to be cooling off (on the primness and intensity, at least… the rest of her is still hot as hell), is going to be dangerously easy; already she’s got him thinking about that other life, way back when, which is something Pyro as a rule never does. He’ll blame it on the tiredness, of course. Sentimentality, as ever, has no place in his world, regardless of how much empathy St. John (wow, now that’s going back some) might have with Wanda as an abandoned child.

Not much chance of escaping that arena of thought either, seeing as how she’d turned things around back to a topic he’d never much liked expounding upon.

”We-ell..” His eyes are on the flame, not on her; it’s easier that way, because seeing how much concentration playing with it used to take it never fails to focus him and that sort of focus is going to be necessary if he’s going to negotiate the minefield between discourtesy and revealing too much. The ‘other name’ might be a start, even if she’s showing a scary amount of insight when it comes to the ‘voice’/name thing, since although it feels more than unnatural to use it some reciprocation of the effort she seems to be making to put him at ease would probably be a nice touch, and for once he’s playing somewhere near nice. ”At the Ins..” - he corrects himself before he can complete the title, not wising her to know about his past allegiance - ”At school I used to go by John, if you want to use that… right up until Erik – erm, Magnus, Magneto, whatever he’s calling himself – decided to re-educate me. Right now doorman is probably the best description of my ‘function’, but when things are back to normal I guess I… make things happen. Aggressive negotiation and, erm, re-arrangement. Stuff like that… whatever the boss sees fit.”

And that didn’t sound bitter at all, now, did it children? Not even mildly twisted, either. But whatever. She asked and that is as near to a straight answer as he can give without sounding like a conceited git or a psycho.

[Magneto]

Magnus stood on the stairs, watching and listening to the conversation below, although his gaze was entirely focused on Wanda, looking her over with doubting eyes. Magneto had received the message his little messenger girl had sent to him and at the mention of Magda's name, he certainly saw fit to end his little meeting with Gambit a bit early. Not many people knew of Magda and by not many, Magneto was the only one who that referred to. He had doubted Wanda's claim and very much wanted to, but as soon as he laid eyes on her, he knew she was telling the truth. She was the complete opposite of Erik, physically, but in that same aspect she was Magda made over.

Slowly Erik took a few more steps toward a confrontation he was no where ready to face. However, he could not stop himself, he had to face this and in a way, a very small part of him wanted this. "It has been a while since I've heard anyone utter my Magda's name," he said interrupting Pyro, "You look a great deal like her you know," he said as his hand slowly trailed down the banister, his eyes still locked onto Wanda's figure. Erik had searched for Magda for years and was denied ever finding her, even to this day and now, so many decades later, he was delivered her daughter.....what a cruel twist of fate.

[Wanda Maximoff]

She may seem more relaxed, but her concentration on Pyro is as intense as ever. She's hit a nerve with something she said, that much is clear, and although telepathy has never been among her talents some things are easily enough read on a face as unpracticed as his.

Chief among them, that he has not yet come to terms with his own past, and that his relationship with "the boss" is anything but mercenary. Does he see her as a threat to their relationship? The thought is laughable in a way, because the last thing Wanda is interested in is being adopted at this stage in life. And then again, it isn't, because a part of her does wonder why Magnus abandoned her and Pietro but chooses to keep this boy by his side.

He gives away so much, without meaning to. "Ins-"... insane asylum, perhaps? No, he'd have said "Asylum". "Institute"? "Instrument something"? "Insatiable something"? Well, no matter. It will become clear. And "John"... interesting. There is power tied up in that name as well. He does indeed live on the knife-edge.

She files that in her mind, along with the name "Erik" and the amusing description of his job. So, she'd been right... it is akin to the Sinti raiding parties, after all. So, he sees himself as a soldier then? Interesting. Who is the enemy?

But before she can explore that question further, an older voice interrupts her train of thought. She doesn't recognize it, precisely, but some part of her responds to it. It's a trained voice, a leader's voice... she begins to understand why others follow this man.

She stands without intention, her interrogation of Pyro forgotten for the moment, and frowns at that. No, that will not do. The body of a Sintisa witch does not react without intention, does not follow the demands of others. That will be the last time.

"Do I? I've been told so." She meets his gaze cooly, surprised to see a trace of hesitation there, unsurprised to see the determination that overrides it. She appraises him for a moment and almost nods... there are demons riding this man, but they do not master him. Good.

"The similarity ends at that point, however. Magda loved you. Feared you. Ultimately died for you. Whereas I merely come to return a token rightfully yours." She reaches matter-of-factly into her cleavage and pulls out an old-fashioned metal locket, which she tosses lightly in Magneto's direction.

"Although I gather from your... doorman, here, that you no longer go by the name Magda knew you by. It is 'Magneto' now, is it? Very... dramatic."

((OOC: the locket has a picture of someone who looks like a younger you inscribed "To my beloved Magda -- Magnus."... ref. application. I've been assuming you actually did give it to her, but Wanda has no way of knowing for sure.))

[Pyro]

Magneto’s arrival naturally sparks him back into a more apt attitude for a dedicated Brother – something like alert and proficient as opposed to whatever strange mind-set Wanda’s presence seems to have forced him into (now that he’s aware enough to check that instinct it seems somehow unnatural and perverse, though without the threat of judgement from above it had been artless enough) – and part of that return to decorum is, it seems, absenting himself, because this isn’t something he should see. Family reunions rate as highly as awkward silences and introspection on his list of things he hates and this seems likely to incorporate all three in some new and even more horrific hybrid.

”I should probably leave you two to it” he says, a brief glance at Magneto at least pretending to ask permission.

[Magneto]

Wanda was very confident in herself, she was or she wouldn't have been so casual and laid back in front of Magneto. Her voice as relaxed but the tone was that of someone who was used to holding some authority. Maybe the whole leadership thing ran in the family, a thought which made Magneto want to pursue Wanda's claim of being Magda's daughter even more.

When Wanda rose and pulled the locket from what appeared to be a very secure location, Magneto tilted his head back slightly and narrowed his eyes, stopping the locked in the air when she tossed it toward him. He slowly pulled the locket to him and watched as it seemed to open by itself. The look in his eyes instantly told a story as old as time and one that had begged to be freed for so long. This one little trinket had perhaps wounded Magneto more than anything else in his life. Bullets, knives, tanks, needles, all turned away by his awesome power but one small charm stopped his heart for a moment and crushed him completely. He had thought Magda had left him, had fled from him and ceased to love him in that effect, but now that he was standing there, staring at the token of his love for her, he began to think otherwise. If she had stopped loving him, why keep this locket and more importantly, why pass it on to her daughter?

The locked and chair floated about on the magnetic stream emanating from Magneto and then as he stretched forth his hand, the locket fell into his palm, allowing the old man to safely put it away in the pocket of his shirt. "I think Magda feared me far more than she ever loved me....but I thank you none the less," he said with a hurt look before turning to Pyro, "Thank you Pyro. I'm sure you have other business to tend to anyway," he said dismissing the boy to do whatever he wanted. This moment was a bit private and needed to be handled on terms of its own making and not in front of those it did not concern. "However, she didn't die for me, your mistaken there. She left me and now, I think I see why, or at least part of the reason why she stayed hidden anyway. I think she died for a whole different cause, one much more personal and one with a love far stronger than she ever held for me," he said as he stepped off the stairs, his hand finding the banister to help support him somewhat. His emotions had gotten the better of him and left him drained a bit for a moment, but he would not let this show if he could help it.

[Wanda Maximoff]

Wanda notes Pyro's instant attention, and files it along with everything else. Whatever knife's-edge this boy may dance on, Magnus owns at least a part of his soul, perhaps all of it.

And from the way Magnus responds, it would seem the relationship is not entirely one-sided. Her father feels for this boy. Not a great deal, perhaps, but something. Good to know... it makes the boy a potential weapon against him, should things progress to that stage. Which means it is still useful to maintain her grip on the boy.

She turns her back on Magnus to face Pyro again, in part to establish that she is not one of his underlings, in part to reinforce her image in his mind. No magic here, no time for it, except perhaps of the oldest and most primitive kind, the magic that eyes and smile and the proper tilt of the head have worked since the first humans climbed from the muck that still clings to them.

"Yes... thank you for your time. If you could spare some moments more to arrange a place for me to spend the night, and perhaps to continue our conversation afterwards, I would be appreciative."

It's an amusing thing, however. With most men she would speak his name to further bind him to her. With this boy, she's uncertain what name to use. It is as if a subtle web of forces binds him to her father, to the others in this building, to others elsewhere, and an instinct she has learned not to ignore tells her that this business of names is crucial to it. Until she understands it better it is best to avoid a mis-step.

Well. She can worry about that another time. She waits for the boy to respond, careful not to be dismissive this time, and only then turns back to respond to Magnus' comments. If she's correctly read in his tone the harmonies of balked ambition, he will read much into her attentiveness.

"I suspect," she responds to the old man on the railing, "from what I've heard and from what I see, that she offered you as much love as you would take, and all the fear you wished." It was a shot in the dark, really, but she already knew from Pyro's behavior that her father ruled as much by fear as by devotion, and his reaction would hopefully tell her something about which power he preferred. She almost scowls, however, realizing she'd also given away more than she'd intended with that statement. She wonders if he will pick it up.

She wonders, also, what cause he refers to. She decides to probe further on this matter, as well. "And I suspect you mistake the love, and the cause, that caused her death for that to which she dedicated her life." Suitably obscure, but tasting enough of relevance to allow him to invest whatever meaning he chose into it.

She suspects the cause to which he refers is herself and Pietro... certainly, Wanda has heard no indication of anything else her mother loved. But she is not sure. If so, however... hm. "Now" he sees why? Had he not previously known of their existence? Interesting, if true... that would imply he does not know of Pietro, even now. Well, if so, she will not be the one to give his existence away.