xp_logs | Trinity: Helga and Hans

Nathan and Wanda, posing as Helga and Hans, German journalists, make a visit to the school for young mutants. A few interesting discrepancies are noted.

"Don't forget," Nathan said brightly as he closed the Land Rover's door and stepped out onto the granular snow, turning to hold Wanda's door for her. "You're Helga and I'm Hans. And we work for Deutsche Presse-Agentur, and are here to do a wonderfully laudatory story about the school." He settled the camera around his neck. "Roughen up your Russian a little, too," he advised Wanda as they headed towards where a well-bundled-up pair were waiting for them at the front doors of the school.

"I saw this in a movie once," Wanda said, just as brightly as she drew her coat further around her. "But you're much better looking than Mr. Ford and I am much better looking than a Nazi turncoat. Helga...Helga." She threw him a look. "Of all the names..."

Turning, she waved at the folks waiting for them. "~Good morning!~" she called, doing just as Nathan had asked her and roughening up her Russian. Not enough that it was hard to understand but enough that she sounded like a German speaking in Russian.

Nathan grinned a bit sheepishly and waved at the two. He'd let Wanda take the lead, here, since she was after all playing the reporter. The woman came scuttling out to meet them, beaming.

"~Hello!~" she greeted them in Kazakh-accented Russian. "~We're so pleased to have you here!~"

Wanda accepted the woman's outstretched hands with her own and returned the smile. "~The pleasure is ours. Like I said when I called earlier, I am Helga...~" She mentally stuck her tongue out at Nathan. "~...and this is my photographer, Hans.~"

The man hung back, more warily, but the woman looked delighted. "~I am Elena Mironova,~" she said, and Nathan made the mental note that it was a very Russian name for the administrator of a Kazakh school.

"~Our paper is very interested in doing a report on the school,~" Wanda said, digging out a pad of paper and a pencil. "~With your permission, of course. And what is your companion's name?~" She was poised to write it down, smiling encouragingly at the man.

"~Ilya,~" he said curtly, not offering anything else.

Nathan raised an eyebrow. #He's here to keep an eye on her and what she says, I think,# he sent to Wanda. #His mind is... odd. Cloudy. He's had training.#

#But not a telepath itself? Interesting.#

Turning up her smile by a couple of watts, she drew her arm through Elena's. "~Now, show me this school of yours, I want to see everything that I can!~" Wanda gushed, charming the woman in question.

---

Nathan had snapped a few pictures as they'd toured the facility, aggravating Illya substantially. Which was quite deliberate on Nathan's part, since aggravation tended to lead to gaps in trained non-psis' defenses.

They were touring the school infirmary, which was neat and tidy if not overly modern, when something particularly interesting slipped from the clouded mind of the glowering man striding alongside Nathan. #Field trip,# Nathan sent to Wanda as Elena continued to burble at her. #There are kids on a 'field trip', quotes intended. He's glad they're gone. It... makes it less awkward, with us here?#

Chattering to the woman next to her, Wanda gave no outward sign that she had heard. "~So, the lunch room is that way, yes?~"

#Probably. Kids are kids and one would have possibly slipped and said something to give them away. Any hint of where they've gone?#

Nathan snapped another picture of the lunchroom as they reached it. A number of chattering kids were at the tables, some of them with visible physical mutations. Their minds, unlike Ilya's, were clear as bells.

#A... geography trip. Some of the kids are disgruntled... apparently the kids who went weren't all from one class. Some sort of... reward? That was the story they were told.#

#Reward for what, I wonder? Hold that thought, I am going to press our luck a little...#

Turning, Wanda touched Elena on the elbow. "~Would it be alright if we talked to some of the children?~" she asked, keeping her voice low. "~It is not needed but our readers like input from children.~"

"~Oh, of-~"

"~No,~" Ilya said forcibly. "~The children should not be disturbed with this.~"

"~Lighten up,~" Nathan said with a smile. "~Children love Helga.~"

"~The questions would just be things like how much they like being here and what they like to do in their spare time, nothing that would disturb them,~" Wanda rushed to assure them. "~I do not wish to bother them, or you, for very long and we are almost done the tour of your wonderful school.~"

Ilya was turning an alarming shade of purple. Elena looked from him to Wanda then back again, hesitantly. "~Surely it could not hurt? The children seem cheerful today...~"

"~Just a few minutes,~" Nathan said winningly, and very unashamedly projected a very gentle suggestion at the woman. She wanted to accomodate them. It would be a lovely addition to the story. Her superiors would be delighted that the institution had been portrayed in such a positive light.

Elena nodded slightly and then looked at Ilya for a second. "~Only a few moments?~" she asked, still hesitant, and Wanda swooped right in.

"~No longer than that,~" she promised, smiling brightly as a few heads were starting to turn towards them. "~Besides, we have their attention now. We will just be an interesting diversion during lunch, nothing more.~"

---

"Unrevealing," Nathan murmured to Wanda as they headed back to the Land Rover, Elena and her shadow Ilya standing at the front doors watching them go. "Although I got a few scattered impressions from the kids that might be useful. I need to think about them some more."

"Think away, those stray thoughts may be important." Wanda paused and waved at the people in the doorway, blowing a kiss to Ilya when Elena went back inside. "That man turns the oddest shades of purple," she mused, catching back up to Nathan. "Is it as bad as you were afraid of?"

Nathan rolled his eyes a little at her gesture to Ilya, but couldn't help smiling. Even though there wasn't really much to smile about. "Something's off," he said. "This field trip? And there's a correlation between the students on the trip and students that I caught the others thinking about, mostly in terms of them not being happy here. Some of the kids think this trip was a way to soften them up, or something like that."

"What? I could not exactly flip him off." Tilting her head at him, she hrmed softly. "So, take the ones that are not yet complacent and butter them up with sweet, happy things? Was it a rushed job, sending them off when they knew we were coming?"

"No... coincidence, I think." He eyed Wanda, with a very faint smile, and quite deliberately slipped into Askani. Handy, her now speaking it fluently. "~We will have to come back this evening. Via illegitimate means.~"

Just for spite, she stuck her tongue out at him. "~Is there a term for~ ninja bad asses ~in Askani?~" she replied, grinning just a little bit. "~But yes, I agree. We will not get anywhere without some sneaking around.~"