xp_logs | Log // Backdated // Alison & Lorna

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Earlier in the week… Alison drops by to visit Lorna and ends up spilling the beans in, well, pretty much the same way she did with Nathan. Lorna manages not to laugh at Alison, somehow. Go Lorna!

One of the stranger effects of living with Alison for a year and a half was that her former roommate's EM signature was easily recognizable. These days, her enhanced sensitivity meant that she didn't even have to go looking for the feeling and was already walking to the door before the quick, hesitant knock sounded through the suite.

As the door opened, an anxious set of blue eyes were revealed, Alison staring at Lorna for a moment before murmuring something in a woebegone way. Pinching one thumb not so lightly, the blonde stepped forward into the room, doing her level best not to wring her hands while trying to figure out a way to actually explain things to Lorna without coming across as a complete nutcase.

Lorna stepped back, taking in Alison's abject posture and seeing the worry and nerves beneath it, quickly deciphering the proper response. Which was to step forward and give her friend a hug before slipping an arm around her waist and wandering them over to the kitchen. "Hi, hon. What brings you to my humble abode? You look like someone stole your puppy."

"If someone stole my puppy, I'd track them down, beat them up and get my puppy back," Alison answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the word, before resuming her moping. The arm around her waist was the first time Lorna had approached her in so matter of fact way since her return and Alison wasted no time at all in taking advantage of it, leaning her head on Lorna's shoulder with a soulful expression. "I need to mope."

Lorna was just as aware as Alison that this was the first outreach gesture she'd made. But it was Alison so it was okay. "Why are you moping? It's not because of your puppy, since we covered that. Also you don't have a puppy which means that moping over it would be silly." They reached the kitchen table and Lorna pulled out a chair with her free hand, gesturing for Alison to sit. "Hungry?"

"I don't know." Alison sat down and shifted a bit, giving Lorna a sideways look. "I mean hungry. Don't know if I am." More fidgeting ensued. "And I'm moping because..." She paused and looked at her linked hands and then at the counter in front of her. She was moping because she was a moron, that was all there was to it, but she wasn't inclined to explain it that way to Lorna. "Mmrbl."

Alison was never really nothungry so Lorna gave her a quiet look then slipped away to give her friend time to think and to find something to make her. "Mmrbl? That's a new one. Is that like mmphth or not?" She was admitting to moping so it wasn't anything life threatening, thank god. Though Alison probably would have been more matter of fact about that than she was at the moment. Maybe something embarrassing?

Still fidgeting more than not, Alison considered her options, even as her expression went from woeful to downright pathetic. The odds of being teased again were high. Not that teasing wasn't warranted, she supposed, but someone indulging her moping would be nice for a change. "Well, I'm a-" the words were cut off short as Alison disappeared from sight suddenly, falling off the chair with a strangled meep of surprise.

Lorna spun around, staring with a dropped jaw at the space where Alison had been. Rounding the table, she was met by a pair of enormous, woe filled eyes staring up at her and a lip just beginning to quiver. Lorna bit her own lips and told herself very, very sternly not to laugh. "Are you okay?" Her voice shook with suppressed mirth as the reached out to offer a hand up.

A whimper answered her, Alison doing nothing to get up but instead looking even more woebegone than before, if at all possible. "No." She sniffled once and then finally gave up, figuring it was just best to get it over with and then beg for help. "I want to ask Haroun to marry me only I'm too scared and I'm just a great big chicken!" The last words were said in a muffled wail, Alison hiding her face piteously.

Lorna's mirth shifted to a sympathetic smile and she knelt beside Alison, pulling her into her arms, "Aw, sweetie." She knew exactly how much marriage scared Alison and knew why too. But she'd go through the motions anyway. "Do you think he's going to say no? I can break his arm if he says no."

The mere thought that Haroun might say no was enough to draw a horrified look from Alison. "He can't say no!" She shook her head furiously at that, even as she determinedly clung back to Lorna. "Saying no is bad and he's not allowed! If I can work up the guts to ask, he's saying yes!" She paused, then whimpered.

Lorna had to bite her lip against another smile. "Okay. So it's not that you're worried he'll say no. Are you afraid that Miles will be unhappy if you get married?" Miles, of course, would be ecstatic. He'd confided his Plan to Lorna on more than one occasion while they curled up on a couch reading or watching a movie during a solar storm.

"I was worried for a bit," Alison admitted, having given the matter thought and knowing only too well that she would have to speak to Miles soon on the matter before anything else was said or done. "But they've been getting along well for a while now." Alison smiled a bit wispily, not letting go of Lorna in the least. "Something about cookies and chess, I've been told."

"I was worried for a bit," Alison admitted, having given the matter thought and knowing only too well that she would have to speak to Miles soon on the matter before anything else was said or done. "But they've been getting along well for a while now." Alison smiled a bit wispily, not letting go of Lorna in the least. "Something about cookies and chess, I've been told."

Lorna hid her smile and hugged her friend again, "I've heard a little bit about that myself. So it's not Haroun and it's not Miles. Is it the leather thing? Concerned that wedding bliss will make being his CO harder?" It was really just a matter of whittling away objections before taking on Alison's actual fears. The less places she had to run when that happened, the better.

Alison blinked at that, then shook her head - it hadn't even crossed her mind, honestly. "No." She pondered getting up - the floor was hard -then decided not, in favor of Lorna still being up with the hugging and all. "...I'm just scared?"

"Yeah, but what are you scared of? You're not just afraid in general, you're afraid of something specific and when you know what that is you can confront it and conquer it." Lorna smiled wryly, "My new therapist gets a lot more of the psychologist speak in than Samson does. Threats are quite as effective over the phone."

"But I don't know why!" Alison half-sighed, half-frowned and then shook her head, careful not to hop Lorna's chin in the process. "And he's starting to catch on to me, though he's not pushing..." Pillow fights were good for something all right. "Mrf. I'm a big coward. That's all. Help me with the ring, please?"

"He's not dumb. You wanted that, you should have dated one of your groupies." Lorna shrugged. "Of course, I'll help." As though Alison even needed to ask. Lorna would have had a fit if she hadn'tfor that matter, "You want to go shopping for it or what?"

A definite sulky look greeted the groupie comment, but Alison soon set that aside. "...actually, I... wanted to ask you and Nathan to help me make something." She smiled a bit at Lorna, then tugged lightly at a lock of green hair. "Dunno. It'd just mean more that way, I think."

Lorna looked stunned. "Make something? I don't know, I don't really have..." that kind of control. But she did, as easy as breathing these days. She just didn't want to use it, shunning all active use of her powers since she came home. Alex hadn't said anything yet but given the way he'd pushed about cooking the other night, it couldn't be far off. Lorna shook her head to clear it and managed a smile, "I think that's a good idea. I've love to help."

Alison's small smile blossomed at that, even as tears gathered suddenly in her eyes. "Oh my god. I'm going to ask Haroun to marry me," she murmured, stunned, even as she reached out to hug Lorna tightly. "Thank you! Thank you for helping, I can't believe I'm going to do this, thank you!"

Lorna laughed even as the force of Alison's hug tumbled her backwards. She caught herself with one hand and hugged tightly back with the other. "Everyone is getting engaged and stuff. I have to say, I'm a little envious. You're going to let me cater for you, right?"

"Bwaaah?" Though she hadn't given any thought at all to anything beyond actually managing to ask Haroun to marry her, Alison's reply was instantaneous. "You're kidding me right? The maid of honor can't be in the back taking care of catering!"

The expression on Lorna's face was such a perfect picture of shock that she couldn't even speak for several seconds. Clearly being part of the wedding party had never even occurred to her. "Wait...what? Maid...whoa. Are you sure? I mean, there's so many others that you could ask, Paige or..."

Alison nodded, grinning in sudden amusement at Lorna's expression. "Paige will be one of the maids of honor." She laughed softly, suddenly - it wasn't as though she'd actually gone through things yet, never mind sorted out what was what and who was who in a wedding, but she supposed thinking ahead a bit couldn't hurt. "But of course I want you to be the head maid of honor. Or whatever the title for that is. Silly."

"Bridesmaids. They're called bridesmaids. There's only one maid of honor." Lorna blinked several times and ran her hand through her hair. "You're not going to make us wear ugly dresses are you? Because I totally get the right to refuse to wear any dress that makes me look fat, yellow or bulgy. Or if there are too many frills. I don't want to look like I'm a pastry." She blinked again, "So when are we designing the rings?"

Gotcha!Alison grinned merrily, trying to stave off the incipient sensation that meant hiding under a desk was imminent. Concentrating on details was okay! "Mmm. Well, I don't know. Whenever works is good. And we'll have to rope in Nathan too and I plan on making you wear potato sacks of courseyou'll get veto right on the dresses and, er, soon?"

"I'll let you worry about it. My days are free and clear and open. I'm not really too much in demand right now and baking can be done anytime." Lorna rested her head against Alison's shoulder. "You should tell Jamie. He'll be beside himself."

Alison's expression turned sheepish at that and she leaned against Lorna. "I think maybe I need to actually get working on the asking part before I do the telling everyone part. So far only you and Nathan know." And she'd forgotten to swear Nathan to secrecy. The thought made her frown. "And Nathan mocked me. Mean old man." A pause, and her thoughts shifted again, belatedly catching on to something else. "...baking?"

Lorna laughed and got to her feet, offering her hand to Alison once she did so. "Nathan's always a mean old man. It's one of his many mutations." She made a note to take him cookies. "And yes, baking. I've been doing a lot of it. Alex scolded me for hiding in the kitchen too much, in fact."

A faint smile answered that. "Well... if you like, after we do the kitchen thing, we can think about a short walk outside..." She paused, then grinned. "Or steaming hot cookies and hot chocolate out on the patio in back, just to appreciate how nice and warm the food is when it's cold out? Cause hey, it's nice out even if it's chilly and that's always a fun thing to do…" Alison babble faded from the room as she and Lorna headed for the kitchen, leaving it quiet and still save for the rays of sunlight dancing through the curtains of the windows.