Are you there, God? It's me, Bob.

[nightcrawler]

Kurt glanced at Bobby and laughed at the boy's attempt to mimic the German accent and the phrase Kurt was so fond of adding to his name from time to time. He nodded his head as he strafed the two students, finding a place on one of the pews in which to perch, pulling his knees up against him and gripping the bottom edge of the pew with his hands. "Mein accent iz not zat bad iz it?," he asked glancing back to Bobby quickly, doing his best to look serious but found himself laughing once again, his many sharp white teeth very present and very evident, but things like that sort of slipped his mind anymore. The feeling of uneasiness he had previously been feeling was subsiding (more than likely to do with the pheromones Laurie was producing dying off) and he took a slow deep breath, pondering on the best answer to give to Laurie's question.

"Vell...," he said taking a pause, "I'm not officially a teacher, but more of a......guiding light you could say," he continued doing his best to classify his standing within the faculty eyes. True, Kurt didn't teach any classes, but he did help out here and there with whoever might need it and as of late, he had found himself taking on the role that a guidance councilor might at a 'regular' school. "There are many here who have trouble adjusting from time to time and I try to do my best to help them if I can," he added, nodding as much to Bobby as he was to Laurie, softly letting them know that he was there to help with whatever he could. After all, Kurt strove to help anyone who he thought might need it, no matter what the problem and no matter how much it might trouble him to do so.

[Bobby Drake]

Bob can’t quite figure out what to make of Laurie’s reaction to his little monologue, and he shrugs semi-apologetically. "Sorry. I guess I get a little carried away about this sort of thing. Anyway, there’s no reason you have to worry about it now… just work on getting it under control for now; you can worry about the rest of it later."

He’s pleased to see her relax a bit at Kurt’s joke, and at his own fake-accent silliness, and it’s like a weight has been lifted from his own shoulders as well. Wow… she wasn’t kidding about projecting her emotional state. Definitely a girl worth keeping happy.

> " Mein accent iz not zat bad iz it? "

Bob grins cheerfully. "Nein… es ist, um, macht gut?, den… das? uber? mein Deutch. Meinen Deutch?" German case structure had defeated Bob even when he was actually studying it, but having forgotten the word for ‘better’ is embarrassing. He gives Kurt a chagrined shrug, and chuckles amiably. "Guess I just proved my own point, huh?"

> " There are many here who have trouble adjusting from time to time and I try to do my best to help them if I can."

Bob notices Kurt’s pointed nod and involuntarily shrugs a bit defensively… Kurt may be great with kids who have trouble coping with being mutants, but Bob’s not sure he feels comfortable going to him for advice on coping with not being one anymore. And as for the whole business with John, well, his impression is that Kurt is old and Catholic enough that the whole idea would probably squick him, not to mention that Bob isn’t really feeling like talking to anyone about that, just yet.

Instead, he nods to Laurie. "Yeah, he’s got a good point… a lot of new students have trouble adjusting to all of this when they first get here. If you’ve got questions, or just want to vent or talk about stuff or whatever, don’t be shy about it. Though I guess in your case we might want to wear breathmasks first, right? " He chuckles to make clear that he’s joking, then adds, genuinely curious "Or is it osmotic in your case?"

[Laurie Collins]

[[getting on the color coding wagon hurrah!]]

"Sorry. I guess I get a little carried away about this sort of thing. Anyway, there’s no reason you have to worry about it now… just work on getting it under control for now; you can worry about the rest of it later."
Laurie mentally kicks herself seeing Bob’s evident discomfiture at her silent response, people often like vocal responses when they talk to you, some people don’t think silence is humanity’s natural state you know she reminds herself and shakes her head quickly. “Oh, no. It’s just…” she bites her lip, still unwilling to spill all of her troubles out onto someone who seems to have enough for ten people, especially such a convoluted knot of troubles as hers “You’re right,” she begins again, “I’ll just work on learning to stop them from drifting out. That can’t hurt anyone.” she looks slightly more cheerful at this proposed dodging of all the ethical dilemmas and troubles wielding her pheromones could pose. Somewhere at the back of her mind she thinks maybe that’s just the cure all over again, dam it up and shut it away and pretend it isn’t real till it all comes out and devours you, but that is not a section she’s going to listen to right now.

She looks on silently at the Germanic antics, her own education has been largely slapdash- heavy on things her mother liked and light on the things (like math) that gave her headaches. German had never even been mentioned. She’s amused by it but her countenance stays solemnly inscrutable, embarrassment seems to be the only emotion that readily manifests itself physically with her. “Well,” she says, noting his stumbling over syllables, “still better than my absolute-non-comprehension at any rate.”

"There are many here who have trouble adjusting from time to time and I try to do my best to help them if I can."
Their exchange following this remark is somewhat more complex. Kurt’s offer of help and Bob’s refusal are unspoken but clear enough to someone who watches the body language of others as sharply as Laurie. She takes a moment to wonder about the other two mutants- a boy only a little older than her with confidence and thought (at least in the mutant sphere) seemingly decades ahead of her and his mysterious recent injury shadowing him like a cloud, and a yellow-eyed, blue-skinned, devout Catholic unofficial guidance councilor to mutants with evident German and circus origins. Maybe these sorts of encounters are the upside of being a mutant she thinks wryly. Both their assurances that a lot of new students have trouble adjusting come as a slight surprise to her- everyone she’s met at Xavier’s so far has seemed like a pretty eligible marcher for the mutant pride parade- but then they all seemed to be settled residents.

"Yeah, he’s got a good point… a lot of new students have trouble adjusting to all of this when they first get here. If you’ve got questions, or just want to vent or talk about stuff or whatever, don’t be shy about it. “She nods slightly, “Yes, uh, thanks…for the offer.” she says softly, looking over at Kurt. Her somewhat shuttered expression shows she has doubts about taking him up on it however genuine her thanks for the offer may be. She’s never had a discussion about her mutation with anyone that lasted longer than a few short minutes and the idea of unleashing all her worries and memories (a flash drifts across her mind of the hitch-hiker her mother had picked up while Laurie slept. She’d had a nightmare and the girl had slammed her way through the car window. She can’t imagine ever sharing that with anyone) onto someone is embarrassing and unsettling. The more mundane problems, stress over homework and new-kid nerves, can wait for her weekly dinner with her mother.

“Though I guess in your case we might want to wear breathmasks first, right? Or is it osmotic in your case?"
He chuckles before she can take the remark seriously and she nods in answer, “Breathmasks work, anything that provides a barrier so that you don’t inhale. Mine work just like animal and plant pheromones. Put me in one of those prison booths with a glass wall and a telephone on either side and I’m completely harmless.” she says, lightly enough, and then pauses suddenly, looking mildly uncomfortable as she realizes she hasn’t made the idea up off the top of her head. “That’s what they suggested, the doctors where I got the cure, when we went back to say it wasn’t working. Go away somewhere all set up like that for tests or something. Some government place I think? My mom wouldn't even let them finish the sentence.” she blushes as that slips out somehow on the heels of her decision not to babble all about her mutation to people she hardly knows. “So I guess if I don’t get this under control the entire institute can get gas masks.” she jokes as a change of subject, remembering to smile wryly to reflect her internal amusement at the image.

[Bobby Drake]

(( OOC: Woot! Yay colorcoding! I’m fond of it for legibility purposes, myself.))

> " Oh, no. It’s just…(pause) you’re right. I’ll just work on learning to stop them from drifting out. That can’t hurt anyone "

The pause doesn’t escape his attention, but Bob lets it go… she’s only just arrived, after all, he’s got no call to push her to talk about things she’d rather keep to herself. God knows he’s got enough of those himself. Instead, he nods encouragingly. "Exactly. And as for the other stuff," he shrugs, "maybe for now it’s enough to just ‘experience the question’, right? "

> " Put me in one of those prison booths with a glass wall and a telephone on either side and I’m completely harmless (pause) That’s what they suggested, [..] My mom wouldn't even let them finish the sentence "

"Good for her!" Bob cheers. He thinks a bit before adding " Mine would’ve signed me up in a minute." Not that he wants to get her on the subject of The Mutophobic Mrs. Drake, but it seems like the best way to encourage her confidences is by offering some of his own. "Anyway, I don’t think it’ll have to come to that. When I first got here the Professor used some biofeedback-type training with me to get my power under control… trick was learning to recognize what it feels like to be about to let loose, instead of being surprised when it happened. I bet something like that’ll work for you, too. That, and maybe holding all your classes in the Blackbird’s wind chamber in the meantime…" He grins.

[nightcrawler]

Kurt notices the awkward silence following his offer to help either teenager.....but with a shrug of his shoulders, he lets it go, after all, you can't force someone to deal with their problems, they have to have a want and a resolution to do so first. All Kurt could do on this matter was sit back and wait and be ready to help if either Bob or Laurie decided to come and ask him to help....or just listen...whichever soothed and helped them the best.

As the conversation went on though, quickly turning in a different direction..and one on mothers (one that Kurt himself wasn't too comfortable to talk about giving his situation right now), he noticed two very differing points of view. Laurie seemed to cling to her mother and with due right for her mother appeared to genuinely love Laurie, perhaps sending her here to help her instead of just getting rid of her like some of the other student's parents had done. Bob on the other hand, seemed to have some sort of resentment toward his mother (heck his family in general and given from what Kurt could piece and make out from the story he head heard from Logan, he could see why....sort of).

"All mothers love their children.....but sometimes fear and a lack of understanding cloud that truth mister Drake. Do not give up on your mother...," he said with a soft smile, as if he was sure of his words but at the same time....not. Kurt was dealing with his own parental issues right now and while at some point he was sure he had been acting like Bobby, but now he was definitely sure of where he need to be standing on his own issue...even if only for Bobby's sake because sometimes, actions spoke louder than words. Standing up from his perch, Kurt nodded to both Bobby and Laurie, "You two zeem to be getting along fine....so I vill leave you Bobby to help miss Collins vith her introduction to the school," he said turning his gaze to Laurie and giving her a wink just before *bamfing* away in a cloud of purple black smoke.

[Bobby Drake]

> " All mothers love their children.....but sometimes fear and a lack of understanding cloud that truth, Mister Drake. Do not give up on your mother... You two zeem to be getting along fine....so I vill leave you Bobby to help Miss Collins vith her introduction to the school, "

"Oh, I’m sure she loves me just fine," replies Bob after a moment’s thought. "She just --" he stops talking as he realizes Kurt has actually disappeared in the proverbial puff of smoke, and coughs a little as it disperses.

"Well," he adds to Laurie with a grin, "that’s one way to get the last word in. And you can count your blessings that your pheremones are odorless, right? "

He makes an effort to continue to seem cheerful, despite his own growing anxiety, and realizes suddenly that he’s not at all sure if his anxiety is due to thinking about his mom, or worrying about coming out to Kurt and those like him, or if he’s just picking up on Laurie’s pheromones. All of which leaves him suddenly understanding her reticence better… after spending a lot of time around her, it would be easy to lose track of where you end and where she begins.

Which strikes altogether too close to home on another front, and he decides not to share the observation.

"So, um…" he starts, just to end the awkward pause… "Have you started classes yet?" He blinks, then adds " No, right, you said you just arrived yesterday, so I guess you wouldn’t have. You know what you’re taking yet? Curriculum here is pretty ad-hoc, so it helps to have preferences of your own… otherwise you may end up taking Comic Book Theory and Introduction to Action Figures from Mr. Sheppard or something."

[Laurie Collins]

"Good for her! (pause) Mine would’ve signed me up in a minute."

Laurie feels a bit of surprise at that admission, other than his recent troubles Bob seems extremely well adjusted to everything mutant. If her own mother hadn’t supported her, reassured her as much as she could, Laurie knows she’d be a complete wreck now even more so than already she adds in a wry mental tone. “My mom’s always been really protective,” she explains quietly, “She moved out here, rented a house about half an hour away, and I go over for dinner every week so she can grill me about not drinking too much soda and doing my homework and all that other mom stuff.” she adds with a smile, wrinkling her nose slightly in fond exasperation with her mother’s parental tendencies. Her mother she doesn’t mind discussing at all, their relationship is probably the one functional thing about her life. (Aside from the guilt complex and all that is.)

"All mothers love their children.....but sometimes fear and a lack of understanding cloud that truth mister Drake. Do not give up on your mother...,"

She keeps her closed off countenance at that remark addressed to Bob though she slightly disagrees with the sentiment if it applies to fathers too. No matter what he says or does… if I ever found him I’d never even begin to forgive him And the thought has barely crossed her mind before the counselor has disappeared in a puff of smoke, making her jump a little despite her foreknowledge of such an ability.

"Well, that’s one way to get the last word in. And you can count your blessings that your pheremones are odorless, right? "

He gets another one of Laurie’s inscrutable faces as a reward for the attempt at levity, though she’s indeed amused behind the façade. She scuffs her foot slightly against the chapel floor in the intervening silence, casting about for something to say and glad when he gets there before her-

“You know what you’re taking yet? Curriculum here is pretty ad-hoc, so it helps to have preferences of your own… otherwise you may end up taking Comic Book Theory and Introduction to Action Figures from Mr. Sheppard or something."

She isn’t sure if he’s joking, tilts her head slowly to one side in an inquisitive pose, “Oh, I don’t think those would be good classes for me… I called his action figure a doll the first time I met him. He makes me a little nervous.” she admits solemnly, as if anything more threatening than a kitten didn’t evidently make her slightly nervous. “Ah, I know I’ll have English and biology and math and all that, hopefully Spanish if it’s offered, but I haven’t even really thought about the academic side of coming here… I’ve never chosen classes before. Homeschooled and all that.” she actually looks fairly excited by the idea, solidifying her geekish tendencies if he’d managed to ignore the poetry quoting and formal speech patterns. “Any I should think about? Or avoid?” she asks.

[Bobby Drake]

> "My mom’s always been really protective […] grill me about not drinking too much soda and doing my homework and all that other mom stuff."

Bob grins, a little wistfully. "That sounds great. I mean, don’t get me wrong," he adds hastily, "it’s not like my mom’s an ogre or anything; she’s fine… she just never really got used to having a mutant son. I don’t know, maybe now that I’m not really a mutant anymore she’ll be OK again." He shrugs… of course, if his powers do come back they’ll just be back where they started.

"Anyway, enough of that. Your mom sounds pretty cool, though; you should bring her around for brunch some weekend, or something, introduce her around. Might be nice to introduce some of the newer kids to some cool parents, just so they can see what it’s like, you know?"

He hesitates for a moment before asking the next question, unsure what reaction he’ll get. "So, what about your dad? I’m guessing from the way you talk about your mom that they split up… do you ever see him?"

> "Oh, I don’t think those would be good classes for me… I called his action figure a doll the first time I met him. He makes me a little nervous."

Bob grins. "So, should I wave a little flag or something to let you know when I’m joking? ‘cuz I’ll admit, it would be funny if you went to him to sign up for one of those, but I actually just made them up. But did you really tell him he played with dolls? That’s wicked cool… wish I’d thought of that. " He chuckles at the thought.

"No reason to be nervous. Honestly, I think the guy’s a bit of a goof, but Josh really likes him, so he can’t be completely useless. It’s a shame you never met Professor Xavier, though – he was the old headmaster, the one the school’s named after. He was… " Bobby swallows hard and looks around the old chapel at nothing in particular as he speaks, "…he was something else. You’d’ve liked him… he had a way of making new kids feel… safe. You know? Like as long as he was in charge nothing could go wrong."

Of course, it was never true, he adds to himself. But it was a nice dream while it lasted.

> " hopefully Spanish if it’s offered, but I haven’t even really thought about the academic side of coming here… I’ve never chosen classes before. Homeschooled and all that. Any I should think about? Or avoid?"

"Actually, if you’re used to being homeschooled you might fit right in… like I said, curriculum is ad-hoc. I’m sure they can dig up someone for you to learn Spanish from, for example. ‘course, there are some core classes – Miss Monroe’s Ethics seminar, f’r example – but in general they’re pretty open. Lots of special kids here; turns out a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work so well."

He chuckles after a moment’s thought. " Definitely recommend Miss Craft’s chem class, though… she probably won’t ever top the day she blew up the ladies’ room near the chemlabs, but she’ll certainly give it her best shot." He pauses, and adds "That was a joke. I mean, yeah, she really did blow up the bathroom, but she insists she isn’t trying to trump that."

[Laurie Collins]

"That sounds great. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s not like my mom’s an ogre or anything; she’s fine… she just never really got used to having a mutant son. I don’t know, maybe now that I’m not really a mutant anymore she’ll be OK again."

“Everyone does adjust differently to the idea of mutation I suppose.” she says thoughtfully, “Everything from people who hate us to those weird kids I saw on TV once wearing big X marks on their clothes.” she pauses to look bemused at the memory, “I hope your mom’s ready to come around soon though.” she adds, ignoring his last bit about not really being a mutant anymore. Things can’t be that unfair… that the cure would wear off on people like me who wanted it more than almost anything and stick to people like him who actually do something worthwhile with their mutation.

“Your mom sounds pretty cool, though; you should bring her around for brunch some weekend, or something, introduce her around. Might be nice to introduce some of the newer kids to some cool parents, just so they can see what it’s like, you know?"

This elicits a slow, uncomfortable looking nod from Laurie. Truthfully she’s not sure how her mom would handle that. Gail is immune to her daughter’s pheromones and loves her regardless, but the only other mutant she’s ever known was- and then as if Bob is reading her mind that mutant is brought up:

"So, what about your dad? I’m guessing from the way you talk about your mom that they split up… do you ever see him?"

Her hands tighten to an almost white knuckled grip on her book and suddenly she’s radiating anxiety and guilt laced with a trace of anger, probably the most disturbing cocktail of pheromones she’s unleashed on Bob yet. “Sorry,” she mutters, looking down at her feet again, knowing at least some of that must have transferred itself onto her conversational partner. Well after that little display I can’t just play it off casually… but if people around here knew… they might think… she keeps her gaze downcast but calms herself down as much as she can before answering. “Um… no, I’ve never met him. I don’t even know his name or what he looks like… though he must look like me I guess since I don’t look much like my mom… he, um, he hurt her.” there’s a slightly evasive quality to her tone at this point, lying by omission is not one of her strong suits, and her face is turned away and unreadable, “She ran away when she found out she was pregnant.” she finishes, shrugging slightly as if to cast off the topic like a shawl. It doesn’t matter anymore… we’ll probably never see him again, and I wouldn’t know him even if I did and he has no idea I exist..

"So, should I wave a little flag or something to let you know when I’m joking? ‘cuz I’ll admit, it would be funny if you went to him to sign up for one of those, but I actually just made them up. "

The change of subject and lighter tone is welcome and she smiles sheepishly, letting her hands relax on the spine of the book and looking up at Bob to wrinkle her nose slightly. “Yes,” she says in a resigned tone of voice that may actually be a preface to a deadpan sort of joke, “you’ll all have to wear gas masks and carry around little flags to be prepared for coming into contact with me.”

“But did you really tell him he played with dolls? That’s wicked cool… wish I’d thought of that. "

A flush spreads across her cheeks, “Well it wasn’t… telling as in accusing I…hope… I just saw this little arm sticking up from a desk and asked if it was a doll and he told me it was an action figure.” she pauses for a beat then adds, “It was wearing a corset though. That was odd.”

“…It’s a shame you never met Professor Xavier, though – he was the old headmaster, the one the school’s named after. He was… " she watches him swallow during the pause and feels the last remnants of her unease over the topic of her father dissipate in the sympathy it provokes. Bob had obviously been close to this Professor, as had others from the reverent way she’d heard him mentioned around the institute "…he was something else. You’d’ve liked him… he had a way of making new kids feel… safe. You know? Like as long as he was in charge nothing could go wrong."

I guess it did in the end though, she thinks, eyes traveling from her companion’s shadowed face to wounded shoulder. It’s an unpleasant thought and she chases it as quickly as she can from her mind, neither of them seems to need anything gloomy to think about right now.

The class descriptions bring a less solemn expression to her face as she listens with interest.

“Definitely recommend Miss Craft’s chem class, though… she probably won’t ever top the day she blew up the ladies’ room near the chemlabs, but she’ll certainly give it her best shot."

Far from the fear one would logically expect from such an uptight, timid person Laurie actually looks rather intrigued. “Blew it up? Wow…” she tilts her head to the side, evidently mulling over what such a class would be like.

[Bobby Drake]

> "Everyone does adjust differently to the idea of mutation I suppose. Everything from people who hate us to those weird kids I saw on TV once wearing big X marks on their clothes."

"Oh, the X-Fans!" Bob laughs, cheerfully. "Yeah, they were kinda Warren’s fan-club for a long time. Still are, I guess, but not quite the same way now that he’s gone and shacked up with someone on national TV. I hear some of them were really peeved." He thinks about it for a second and adds "I don’t think it’s the same thing, though. I mean, crazy or not, they’re really just doing what crazy fans have done with celebrities since, I dunno, they invented television, I guess. That he’s a mutant is kinda beside the point." He shrugs. "Dealing with your own family, your own friends… that’s different from celebrities, don’t you think? Least, it seems like it ought to be."

> " I hope your mom’s ready to come around soon though. "

Bob shrugs and nods. "Thanks. I appreciate that." The truth is he doesn’t expect it to happen, ever… but he suspects it would hurt her feelings if he threw the good wishes back in her face, and he doesn’t want to do that. Which leaves him wondering, suddenly, whether that’s because he genuinely likes her, or because he’s being conditioned by her pheromones to want to make her feel good.

Which disturbs him a little, before he finally decides that it doesn’t really make a difference. Even if it is her pheromones, it’s not like she’s manipulating me on purpose… and hell, for all I know pheromones are why anyone ever likes anyone, she’s just… more likable than most, is all. It’s not like she’s an unpleasant person I like for inexplicable reasons, or anything.

Despite his good intentions, though, he can tell his reference to her father bothers her. So, what then, I’m never supposed to bring him up? He can feel himself becoming angry, anxious, vaguely guilty; he doesn’t even hear her next words past the roaring in his ears. Where does she come off expecting me not to bring it up, after she waxes all rhapsodic about her mom?!? He’s about to read her the riot act when she turns away from him, looking embarrassed or perhaps evasive, and suddenly the anger fades as if it had never been, leaving him a little dazed.

Whoa. Yeah, she isn’t kidding about those pheromones… they pack a wollop! He appreciates the light-hearted change of subject as much as she does, if not more, as he gets his emotions back under control.

> " It was wearing a corset though. That was odd."

That cracks him up, though he can’t quite tell if she meant it as a joke or not. Which seems only fair, really. Through outbursts of laughter he replies " Oh… (giggle) no, that’s the new school (snort) uniforms, actually… skintight black leather for the guys, corsets for the girls… or (chuckle) was it the other way around? I forget." As he speaks, he waves a finger back and forth in the air, as if it were a small flag.

[Laurie Collins]

Laurie was too involved with her own feelings when the topic of her father came up to pay much mind to how Bob reacted, though his silence in the face of a revelation which would cause most people to at least look at her awkwardly and offer a platitude is an indication that he was indeed affected by her response. She chooses denial and a carefully averted face as her methods of the moment, knowing that with such unsettling emotions coursing through her nothing good could have come of sharing them with anyone, especially someone with so many problems of his own to add fuel to the fire. She’s surprised and relieved when he goes along with her lighter tone and laughs at the action figure story.

" Oh… (giggle) no, that’s the new school (snort) uniforms, actually… skintight black leather for the guys, corsets for the girls… or (chuckle) was it the other way around? I forget."

She giggles too, probably the first time she’s actually laughed or done more with her face than smile slightly or bite her lip since she scrambled out of the confessional in a rush of nervous contrition. She shakes her head and puts one hand over her face, fingers spread so that her eyes are peeking out from between them in an act of slightly embarrassed, mostly amused recollection when she realizes that his waving finger is supposed to be aforementioned “just-kidding” flag. “I think it was a boy do—um, action figure actually.” she informs him, lowering her hand and raising her eyebrows, casting a critical look at Bob, as if to ask just where his uniform is before smiling and shaking her head again at the amusing image.

He’s a nice guy. she thinks idly, I definitely wasn’t making him like me, even subconsciously, a minute ago when he asked about my dad and he’s still being nice. I can’t manipulate someone that well without meaning to can I? Must just be his nature. The idea of conditioning obviously hasn’t occurred to her yet and she’s starting to really relax, to shift the book she’s been alternately clutching to her stomach and letting rest on her lap throughout the conversation off her lap and over to the side and to relax her ramrod straight posture when the thought crosses her mind- His mom, the cure, getting hurt because of whatever guy he’s dating… it’s not fair that things like that happen to good people, and it hasn’t been fair to him at all, dealing with me and my problems and my pheromones that sort of make them feel like his problems at least for a bit, all when he came here to be alone and look for some peace. I wish I could help him and really I guess I could…

Her open countenance is suddenly shuttered away again so quickly and effectively that one can almost hear the audible slam of a door somewhere as her face smoothes to blankness. She’d actually started to try, for a second had been tempted, to see if she could just concentrate on peace, on safety, and radiate it out just for a moment, just to do something good for someone who’d been nicer to her than he needed to be, who shouldn’t have to be scared or sad. She might have succeeded too, she didn’t know, she couldn’t, and she couldn’t bring herself to look at him to find out, concentrating on a spot to his left, a picture of The Madonna hanging crooked. Maybe this is how it started with him, good intentions, the road to hell. That’s the first time I’ve ever even considered trying. This is why I stay away from people

“I’m sorry if I… I should go.” Regardless of whether or not I actually… I don’t want to want to. “It was really nice to meet you though.” she adds, smiling shyly though she’s still not looking at him.

[[the last words are yours for the taking, no design as to whether Bob caught a whiff of those parting pheromones, but Strikeback is the first time she knowingly emits and recognizes the sensation and this takes place before that so it's all up to you haha]]

[Bobby Drake]

(( ooc: nah, that sounds like a great last post. thread is archivable. rah! ))