LOG (backdated): [Tommy, Marius] The new kids meet

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Marius and Tommy finally cross paths, and, strangely enough, find it's something of a relief to talk to someone else still new to the whole mutant thing.





Marius was disappointed. He really had thought Kyle would be here, but according to the librarian his roommate had been released early. That was a bit annoying. Marius had been looking forward to watching him toil.

He was already in the process of leaving when his vague speculations on an ulterior form of entertainment were interrupted by a noise from the stacks to his right. Books falling, and a sharp mutter that Marius believed would've been a curse had he been close enough to catch the words. Changing trajectory, he headed for the sound.

The source of the literary avalanch turned out to be a stranger, blond and almost as tall as Marius. He was standing in the middle of the fallen books with a stricken look, only just lowering his arms from his head. A book, presumably the keystone that had been holding together the volumes of the top shelf, was still clutched in one hand.

"You right there, mate?" Marius asked with a slight smile. "Know from experience that hardbacks and skulls make for a nasty mix."

Tommy rolled his eyes and groaned. As if this wasn't embrarssing enough, someone had to be by and see this. He touched the back of his head which thankfully wasn't bleedy but still like a bitch. "I'm fine. Really." Shoving the book he had been after under his arm, he bent down and began picking up the books, wanting to be out of thier as fast as he could. Being outside his suite still made him slightly nervous.

This was surely Tommy -- he was the only older student Marius didn't at least know by sight at this point. Recalling the headmaster's comment about the boy's integration being "tricky," Marius suspected there was a reason for Tommy's hasty attempts to collect the fallen books. Then again, Marius could see how any encounter with Kyle that had gone bad enough to result in library-duty might make someone a little paranoid.

Marius shrugged and moved to help, stooping to pick up a few of the heavier books; the shelf was high, even for him, and the other boy's breathing was already slightly labored from trying to reshelve. "Slow down or you'll do yourself in there," Marius said, scrutinizing the spine of one of the books he held to determine its proper location on the shelf. "Last thing you want is a hernia. And since you're not the only one still sportin' Coma Victim Chic, I'd take it as a favour if I didn't have to haul you down to Medlab."

Glancing at this other kid from out of the corner of his, he tried very hard not to wince as he lifted a particulary heavy book with his newly healed arm. "Yeah, I've had enough of the scary red heads for a lifetime." Though Tommy realized he hadn't talked to Dr. Grey in a while and he certinly could use the calming effect she had on him. All too soon, they were finished and Tommy turned to the kid, hands in his pockets. "Thanks for the help." And he honestly was. He was beginning to like the small breaks he got around this place.

"No worries. I've been there." Marius spread his arms, indicating clothes that still hung too loose on him. "Actually, I'm still there. PT's a right bitch, but you should've seen me when I got in. It gets better. I'm Marius, by the way. The other new kid. Technically newer'n you, but I beat you regainin' consciousness."

Tommy blinked for a second. "Is it frightening to you how many people come in that way? Because it is to me..." He shook his head slightly. "But I agree with you on the PT. The name's Tommy, but you probably knew that." He had no doubt someone had gotten to this kid already and told him all about what a bigot Tommy was. The thought in itself made him roll his eyes.

Marius nodded. "Yeah, the rumormill with this lot defies belief. Roomin' with the Japanese bloke, right? I'm in with Forge, Jay an' Kyle. And yeah, it's a little unsettling that half the student body seems to have come in unconscious or ended up that way after the first ten minutes. Plus side is they know how to work you back through it, though."

"Yeah." It was the best answer he could come up with. This guy roomed with Jay and Kyle and they were having a civil conversation? Tommy was slightly confused but again glad for the small break.

Marius realized he was probably going to be doing most of the talking in this conversation. Then again, at least the kid hadn't been so freaked out he'd phased through a piece of furniture yet. When he put it into that perspective this wasn't going too badly.

The Australian pondered inoffensive smalltalk, but decided that was too much effort. Instead, he shrugged. "Don't have the patience to be all tactful, so might as well have this out. Yeah, I've heard you were in the FOH and that, and a bit about arson and gettin' torn up when your power showed. Yeah, half my mates are in a snit about you or gettin' disciplined because they got carried off by it. I get where they're comin' from. But as for me personally, I don't much care." Marius spread his hands and smiled. "Four months ago I didn't know a mutant from a treestump, and thought of 'em about as often. Now I'm in a school full of 'em with the nagging feeling my brain's gone inside out. Life's weird like that. I've decided to sit back and take it as it comes. Any expectation I work up would probably be out the window in a week, an' really, after the whole finding out I'm a mutant bit I just can't be bothered anymore."

Tommy just blinked. He got probably one word out of ten, though he he got that part the kids wasn't one of the people out for his blood so he wasn't exactly worried. Though he did wonder how the kid breathed... "Uh...do you always talk this much?"

Then he shook his head. "And thanks...I think."

"No worries," Marius grinned. Tommy didn't seem uncertain anymore, and a glazed expression was an old, familiar friend. "And yes. My skills of oration are stunning to behold, are they not? Have to admit, though, I run a distant second to Forge on a technobabble tear, especially if he's been up for twenty hours mainlinin' Red Bull. Couldn't keep pace even when I was using the same bloody power."

"Ye-ah...Mairus, was it? You talk too much." A smile perked at the corner of his lips. The kid may talk up a storm but he wasn't cursing him out and actually treating him like a normal person and Tommy couldn't beat that. "Not that that's a bad thing of course. Just, mind going some place a little more comfortable? I did just have books fall on my head."

"No argument here. Dunno where, though. My flat's a bit of a problem, so maybe the Rec Room or the kitchen for something to . . ." Marius paused, and shuddered. "No. Not the kitchen. I have a Rule about meeting people in the kitchen."

Tommy 's eyes went wide for a moment but schooled his expression. "No kitchen. How about my suite then? Shiro's in finals, thought come to think of it, we don't talk much anyway."

Marius shook his head. "Can't say as I've spoken to him. Been introduced briefly, but it was on a fieldtrip so it was in more'a 'these are your classmates, these are the staff, and these are the chapherones whose orders you shall obey as unto those of God' capacity. And then a riot happened." He shrugged again. "Anyway, lead on."

Tommy shrugged slightly. "I got about the same, except it was here's your new room mate. Besides that, we mostly leave each other alone, but he seems to have enough to deal with with a little sister, the purple girlfriend and some blonde guy who keeps poking his head in." Tommy was good and barely flinched when he mentioned the purple girl. Then he picked up the book he had been looking for and motioned towards the door. "Let's go."

Marius nodded, and followed Tommy out of the library. He had a vague memory of Forge aiding in the second floor shuffle of Shiro's worldly possessions and so had an idea of where they were headed, but he let Tommy take the lead. Marius was aware his personality could be a little overwhelming, so he decided to be generous and give the kid a chance to make the next move.

Once they got to the suite, Tommy pushed open the door and looked inside. It didn't seem anybody was in the common room and Shiro's door was shut. So, he walked inside and over to a small fridge in the corner. "Could I get you anything?"

"Sport drink or water'd do," Marius replied, glancing around. It looked as if it occupied the same space as the suite he shared with the others, but divided a bit more generously without a third room. The place still had a sparse, not-quite-unpacked look to it, with the odd box still against one wall.

Tommy pulled two waters out of the fridge and tossed one to Marius before plopping down on one of the couchs. "So...how did you end up here in this ...school." To his credit, the first thing that had come to his mind was 'freak house' but he was able to hold his tongue.

Marius caught the bottle and popped the lid. "Short story? My mutation buggered my metabolism but good, 'dietary deficiency' bein' the polite euphemism. Bone marrow thing. Basically starvin' to death. Stayed in hospital a few months until we sorted out I was a mutant, parents sent me here, and got properly diagnosed. Now I'm more or less all right again. Not the best introduction to a mutant power, but I'm not dead, so I'm not complainin'."

"Wait...you eat bone marrow?" The question was easier than arguing who had the best intorduction to being a mutant. "How does that work exactly?"

Marius lowered the bottle and eyed the other boy speculatively. Usually he had no compunctions about showing his mutation, but then, so far everyone who'd asked had 1) already been familiar with mutancy in general, and 2) not been former members of the Friends of Humanity. He concluded a little caution wouldn't hurt.

"It's tactile," he said, holding up his free hand and pointing with a finger not vital to supporting the water bottle. He'd keep the gloves on until he saw how Tommy was taking this. "Got a pair of mouths on my hands that can latch on an' suck it through the skin. We figured we can do it mechanically, with the equipment and that, but it's a lot easier to do it natural-like. No actual eating involved, an' most are fine again in a day or so. Bloody pain in the arse, not to mention bleedin' weird, but it's that or a terminal ward."

Tommy blinked in surprise. Well, that certainly put his mutation into perspective, that would be freaky even without the FOH background. "So, you have mouths on the plams of your hands that suck bone marrow out of another person that you need for health purposes." Even saying it out loud didn't give it anymore sense. One hand slipped into his pocket, the lead leaves sought out as a small comfort. "That's....interesting?" Well, it was the nicest thing that came to mind.

Marius smiled, slightly relieved. "Personally my thought was 'bloody stupid,' but interestin' I'll take. Only good bit is it lets me use other people's powers for a bit. It's nice bein' able to see what it's like havin' a power that does not literally suck." Marius took another swig of water, studying Tommy. "What's yours, anyway? Can't quite figure it . . ." He'd been wondering that ever since he'd met the boy, but enlightenment had yet to arrive. Whatever Tommy did, it shared some characteristics with telekinesis, but also, strangely, with what he'd seen from Paige. And Paige was some sort of elemental metamorph. Marius wasn't quite sure how those two things reconciled.

"Huh." Tommy nodded his head a bit. While he was still getting used to being a mutant himself, the thought of getting to try other powers was kind of cool. If your going to be a freak, might as well captialize on it. Then he looked over at Marius and carefully pulled out the lead twig. "Me? Don't quite know honestly. The only thing I can tell you in detail is there is a lead tree in the local park becuase I touched it while mentally reciting every thing I knew about the element. Besides that...no idea."

Marius raised his eyebrows. "You can turn other stuff into different elements?" he asked, genuinely surprised. He sat back, studying Tommy again, harder now. "Is it just lead or -- no, it's . . . I don't think it's that narrow . . ." He frowned, thinking of Rahne and Catseye, and the frequency of their auras as opposed to that of Paige. It was difficult to tell how much of the difference lay in the specificity of their powers and how much in the fact they transformed into living organisms rather than inorganic substances.

Okay, now the kid was staring at him and it was kind of freaky. And he would never admit it, but in that moment, Tommy glanced around to make sure he'd hadn't grown a tail or turned pink. "Um, what are you talking about? What are you doing?" He was fidgeting slightly, really getting unnerved.

Marius blinked, then remembered staring was rude. Also, the beginnings of a headache were starting. He shook his head, massaging his forehead with one hand. "Sorry. Only been a mutant for something like two months now, so I'm still workin' out what all I do. One of the things is bein' able to tell mutants on sight. More I meet, more I can figure who does what. Your power reminds me of someone. Girl named Paige. You met Forge, yeah? She's his lab partner. She's an inorganic metamorph, or omnimorph, or whatever the fancy word for turnin' into other elements is. I . . .think you do the same thing, but turned out on other things." He pressed the cold bottle of water to his forehead, hoping it would soak up a little of the ache. He wasn't sure whether the headache was from straining his powers or just thinking too hard.

Now it was Tommy's turn to stare. "So you can tell mutants apart from other people..." The rest of Marius' little speech had pushed through one ear and out the other, but that tidbit stayed. His first thought was that the FOH would kill for someone like that, mutant or no. What scared him though, was the second, how he would do anything to make sure they didn't. When exactly had his thought patterns crossed over and why hadn't they thought to clue him in? Then he noticed Marius' discomfort and got up to get a small towel and some ice. "Here. You okay?"

"Cheers, mate," Marius said, accepting the towel and holding it to his forehead. The skin began to numb almost immediately. "No worries. Apparently migraine's a common thing when you're gettin' used to your powers. Doesn't happen when I use other people's. Odd, that. But . . . yeah. I can see 'em. Only in person, though. Doesn't work through telly and that."

"I've only used mine once so I really wouldn't know." Tommy said softly be taking his seat back and gulping down some water. "You can see them? The mutations? What, like an aura?" He was curious, even as he pushed back his previous thoughts on the subject.

"It's . . . well, calling it sight's a bit dodgy." The headache was definitely subsiding; the ice was helping. Still, for now Marius kept his eyes closed in case looking at Tommy aggravated it again. "It's hooked in with it, because I have to see 'em to identify 'em, but no one really looks any different. No colors or that sort of thing. Just a feelin'. I look, an' I just know." He searched for a suitable comparison, and brightened. "You know. Like gaydar."

It was probably a good thing Marius' eyes were closed because Tommy had been taking a sip of water when he said that last statement and instead of swallowing, it dribbled down his chin and he started to choke slightly. He thumped his chest a few times as he coughed but finally was able to draw a steady breath again. "So it's just a feeling really?" Off that subject, *now*.

"Yeah," Marius nodded, oblivious. "But everyone's got a different . . . vibration, I guess. People who're energy projectors, like Mr. Summers an' Ms. Dane, have a different vibe than passive mental-types like Forge. Can kind of tell the specifics from the frequency. Easiest thing to tag is whether the power's somethin' you can use on the world around you or somethin' that affects only yourself. Yours works on things around you." Marius grinned behind the ice. "Guessin' mutations isn't the most useful power, but it makes a good party-trick. Jamie calls it my preydar."

"Preydar is better then gaydar..." Tommy muttered to himself as he used his sleeve to wipe the water off his chin. "You'd be suprised. I know people who would claim that it would be the only useful power out there." Putting the water a side, he leaned back in the couch putting a hand to his head. Now he was getting a headache, and it wasn't powers related.

"They're welcome to it," Marius said with a shrug. "Let them deal with teeth in the wrong places an' weekly visits to Medlab to make sure I don't miss a meal and go completely mental." An instant's reflection informed him this was probably less than reassuring, but he wasn't going to lie. "Uh . . . by the way, that's been known to happen. It was only the twice, back when I first got here, but -- well, there are plenty'a folks around here that kick my ass on a regular basis, but in case they're off fightin' aliens or something Rahne tells me it's better to be still an' wait for me to have done with it. After a minute or so it's lights out an' I fall over on my own." He lowered the towel and smiled wryly. "An' yeah. Had worlds of fun figurin' that one out."

Tommy frowned slightly but nodded slowly. This kid was being nice and totally open with him. And yet, a few months earlier, he would have used this kid if he'd been discovered. The thought was making him sick to his stomach. But he managed a smile and nodded. "I'm sure, but good thing ya did. I'm not looking forward to figuring mine out. Dr. Grey wanted to start earlier but I wanted to heal first."

Marius grinned wolfishly. "You scored Dr. Grey for power training? Nice one! I've got Dr. MacTaggert. Brilliant doc, but occasionally scary beyond all reason. Not that you heard that from me." He absently rubbed the melting ice cubes through the fabric of the towel, unconcerned that his hand was getting damp. "But the power thing can be bloody annoying. Most here seem to control 'em pretty well, but mine only ever kick in when there's somethin' to react to. Think I'm startin' to get the swing of it, but it takes time. Like workin' a new set of muscles." Sometimes literally. "If it's only been the one tree your power's probably controllable, so that's not bad. Mr. Summers used to have to wear glasses to keep from blowin' out walls every time he opened his eyes. So it could be worse, right?"

"I wouldn't call it luck exactly..." More she saved me from an unfortunate meeting with a razor blade... "Let's just say, I haven't given the periodic table much thought since then. When I'm healed enough to take on trying to turn things into gold or whatever, we'll see about control. It's the main reason I'm still here. Despite what people may say, I do want to learn how to control my powers." He sat up a bit, the water bottle having been placed on the side table, playing with the lead twig in his hands.

Marius nodded. "Speakin' from experience, it's not much fun findin' new powers on the fly. Especially if they're to do with other people." He winced, remembering Dani. "People're amazingly forgiving around here, but I don't enjoy not knowin' what's safe and what's not, or not bein' able to control what I know isn't." He shook his head, wiping the damp towel across his face. It was nice to talk to someone else who wasn't settled in with his powers. Some of the others were already so comfortable with their mutations Marius felt a bit uncomfortable admitting his concerns. He lowered the towel and smiled again. "It gets better, though. Less weird. --Okay, maybe not less weird, but definitely less scary."

"I don't think being a mutant is ever going to be less weird, for me at least. It's hard to fight 15 years of thinking." Then, Tommy sighed and fell back into the cushions again. "And while my skin still crawls at having to live here, this is the best place probably in the world to help me at this point. I'm with you, I don't like not knowing. I can deal with half the student population neither liking nor trusting me just so I can figure this out, at least so I never hurt anybody with them, including myself."

"Sounds reasonable to me," Marius replied. "Guess I can see how it'd be a rough transition. I had it a bit weird, too . . . though probably bein' the bloke who makes everyone else's skin crawl gives a different perspective, eh?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "Trust me, no worries about the others. They'll come around. If this lot'll go for a kid who eats people, I doubt they'll be holdin' out on you forever."

Tommy raised an eyebrow, an amused smirk on his features. "You'd be suprised...Though I can't blame them really. I won't say I was wrong, because at the time, I wasn't. I'm still not sure how I feel about it, but I refuse to apologize at this point. I think dealing with someone like you is much easier for them than dealing with someone like me." He shrugged. "But whatever. I don't care. I'm trying my best in the situation given to me and they can just leave me alone if they don't like it."

Marius cocked his head. "Wait, what wasn't wrong at the time?" he asked, now slightly lost. "Sorry, just tryin' to get this straight -- only got the cliffnotes on what all went on, so I'm not quite sure what you're talkin' about."

Tommy closed his eyes and lifted a hand to rub his temples. "At the time when I burned down the cafe and attacked one of the students here, I thoroughly believed in what I was doing. Some aspects of it I still do. I know some people want me to regret what I did, but I don't. I can't." His voice had grown softer as he spoke.

Marius opened his mouth, then shut it again. After a moment of thought he said, "Y'know, I was goin' to say somethin' at that, but I know what you mean. Other week I was feelin' a bit shirty about somethin' Forge did, so I pulled an idiot joke on him. Turned out the rest've the school was more bothered than he was. Even got chewed out by Ms. Dane for it. Thing is, though, I wasn't sorry for it. I'd have felt different if it'd turned out as bad as everyone seemed to think, but it didn't, so . . ." He shook his head. "Don't know. Told Forge why I did it, and that I wasn't tryin' for the hurt, and it was no harm done. As far as I'm concerned, that's all that mattered."

Raising an eyebrow, Tommy wanted to point out that nearly killing someone because of beliefs was quite abit different then playing a joke with someone's leg, but instead kept quiet. He instead choose to be thankful for the small favor in that Marius didn't storm out or try to lecture him *again*. "Something like that."

"Yeah. That I get." Marius paused to scratch his ear, thinking of his meeting with Lorna. "Told that to any who were involved yet? Doubt they'll love you for it, but sayin' straight-up you're not sorry and here's why'll at least get it out in the open. Keepin' quiet's not really the best strategy. This lot can seethe like nothin' else."

"Told anyone...right. Well, I've been avoiding that journal thing, would that be a place to do it? Because you're right, I might as well get it out in the open." He shifted a bit as he thought about it. It would certainly cause a back lash but whether it was a good thing or not didn't matter to him. At least then he'd be proving he was at least honest about how he felt. Maybe it would get *some* people off his back.

Marius nodded, grinning. "Yeah, the journal's where I make all my public service announcements. 'Yes, I did randomly attack Mr. Dayspring my first day,' 'Yes, that shrieking from the kitchen would have been Dani and I almost frying each other's brains,' 'Yes, I will be paying to replace Jennie's door' . . . dead useful, really. I hate repeatin' myself."

Tommy sighed softly as he considered something in his head. "Alright, I guess I could give it a go. But I doubt it's going to sit well will people that I now have access to their public forum. Still, let them get upset, I could care less."

The other boy snorted in amusement. "Mate, I care what other people think of me about as much as a duck cares about astrophysics, and even I get a little down about the fact a couple of people steer clear because of the marrow-thing. I'm laying odds you care a little."

Tommy just raised his eyes. "You'd be surprised. Though the marrow thing really isn't the freaky, not enough to make one steer clear anyway. It shouldn't. And whoever does probably ain't worth your time. So if people wanna steer clear of me because of who I was? Let them. At least I won't have to deal with it."

Had their positions been reversed, Marius probably would have said the same -- had said the same, actually. But now that he was on the receiving end of it he couldn't help remembering how Kitty had reacted to meeting him after her experience with Vlad. Kitty was dating Jamie, and he'd always spoken highly of her. Since Jamie wasn't delusional, Tommy's assertion that his girlfriend's opinion was irrelevant didn't quite ring true.

Maybe the idea that it wasn't was why the encounter had bothered him, more than he cared to admit.

"Some've had bad experiences, is all," Marius finally concluded. "But I'll admit, if you know you can't agree to disagree sometimes it's easier to just avoid a person. Still, gettin' it all out in the open's the only way you can figure if it's necessary."

"Yeah, you're right. It's going to take me a few days to figure out exactly what to say. While I'd like to avoid people, I don't want to say something that will send them knocking down my door." Tommy nodded softly, looking down at the floor as he began to think about exactly what he wanted to say to the school at large. "But still, don't let them get to you."

Marius laughed. "What, me? No worries, mate. I may go in for the occasional whinge, but my drama is fleeting. I do pretty well, all things considered." He did feel better for admitting the frustration that sometimes came with his powers, in fact. However, Tommy was still studying the carpet with a pensive look. Marius decided that wouldn't do.

The ice was well-melted now, which was good. It meant there was less of a mess when the towel containing it hit Tommy in the middle of his face.

Starting quickly at the sudden cold cloth that hit his face, Tommy jumped, glancing between the the towel and Marius before he burst out laughing.

"May want to practice what you preach -- brooding kills," Marius grinned, rising from the couch. "And now I've got a laugh out've you I think I'll be goin'. Cheers for the conversation. Nice not bein' the only one still trying to catch his brain up to his genetics."

Smiling, Tommy stood to to show him out. "I wasn't brooding, I was wording exactly what I was going to say to the school at large. Wait, never mind...that would be brooding." He rolled his eyes, but still smiling. "Yeah, thanks. I hope to talk to you soon. It's nice to have an intelligent conversation where I don't get lectured and judged. Drop by anytime."

"Moral indifference is an underrated virtue," Marius smirked. He gave Tommy a mock-salute. "See you around."