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xp_logsIn response to this email, Amanda gets a call from Ororo.
Ororo looked at the phone on her desk, then away at the window longingly. While she had just about concluded her business in the office for the afternoon, there was still one more thing that needed doing. The trouble was, it wasn't exactly the easiest thing in the world.
But duty was duty, and she was nothing if not dedicated.
Dialing the number for Snow Valley's main office, she greeted Mark as he picked up and requested to be transferred to Amanda's number. When she heard the British girl's 'hello' she cleared her throat and sat up a little straighter in her chair. "Amanda, hello. This is Ororo Munroe, from the mansion."
Amanda sat up, toppling one of her piles of files. She'd decided to follow the example of, well, everybody just about, and throw herself into work as a distraction. And to stop checking her email every five minutes. "Um, Ms. Munroe, hello," she stammered, trying to restack things without sounding like a complete twit. "What can I do for you?"
"It is more a matter of what I can do for you, I believe," Ororo responded. "I received your email, and I was calling to see if Remy or Wanda had informed you any further about the situation with Manuel." She knew the Professor hadn't - it was actually under his urging that she was making this call now. He assumed that Amanda would be more welcoming of a call from her, considering the long history between himself and Amanda.
"Oh, right, my email. Of course." Now she really did feel like a twit. "Um, no, Remy and Wanda haven't said anything yet - think they're still cleaning up things and want to check with you lot about what can be said." Her palms were suddenly sweaty, and she adjusted her grip on the telephone. Now it came to it, she wasn't sure she could handle the answers to her questions. "Sorry if I was out of line asking, only... well, I explained in the email. Is he... that is, can I ask if he's going to be all right?"
"You were not out of line asking," Ororo assured her, trying to keep her tone warm and reassuring. It was harder than usual, for some reason. "Though I would ask that anything I tell you remain in your confidence, I would be glad to answer your questions. To begin with, Manuel is still in the hospital in Monaco, though I am told his condition continues to improve, albeit slowly. Marie was with him through the weekend, and she tells me the doctors are cautiously optimistic about his chances for recovery."
Some of the tension drained out of her and Amanda slumped a little in her seat. Improvement was good. "Of course I won't say anything - it's like the medlab and the patient confidentiality thing. Can you tell me what happened to him?" She asked the question hesitantly, not sure if she wanted the truth. If the X-Men had been involved, if he'd hurt anyone...
"It is a difficult situation to explain. When we located Marius and Jennie, they were... less than happy about being found. Unfortunately, this degenerated into a pursuit, and while Jennie and Manuel were fleeing, Jennie had a powers incident that resulted in a backlash of luck. I was not there to witness it, but I believe what happened is that a truck was affected and Jennie was nearly hit by it, only to be pushed out of the way by Manuel. He was hit instead."
That bloody macho heroic streak of his... Amanda closed her eyes, trying not to see the mental images that insisted on unspooling in her mind. "A truck..." Her voice shook a bit, and she reminded herself that Ororo had said he was recovering. Then something else the headmistress had told her registered. "You said they were less than happy to be found... was that..." She swallowed the lump in her throat, tasting acid. "Did Manuel use his powers on them?" It came out as a choked whisper. "Did anyone else get hurt?"
"No," came Ororo's immediate response; she hated to hear the pain in the younger woman's voice. "Because of the nature of Marius' power, he absorbs other mutant's powers without always gaining the control necessary to keep them in check. It seems earlier this summer, Manuel allowed Marius to feed on him, and because of that..." She trailed off, unsure if more needed to be said on the subject. "There were other injuries," she added obliquely, "but nothing permanent. Everyone will recover, with time."
"Oh, thank fuck for that." It burst out before Amanda could stop it, the relief obvious. She'd been right to hope, to believe there was still some decency there. And the news of Marius was hitting just a little too close to home. Desperate people do desperate things. "I'm sorry, I just... they said it was his fault, and I couldn't..." Pull yourself togther, Sefton. "I'm sorry," she said again, taking a deep shuddering breath and cutting the babble. "Jennie and Marius are back at the school, I know that. You lot will see they're okay. But what about Manuel? Do you know what's happening with him?"
"As far as I know," Ororo said, pulling up a file on her computer and scrolling through it. "He will remain in the hospital for the time being, until he is stable enough to be moved. After that... there has been the suggestion of moving him to Muir, for continued observation." It seemed like a good plan to her, and she knew Moira was practically insistent upon it. "I am afraid I cannot say for sure when that will be."
Again the relief. Muir was a good place, even if he hated hospitals. Whatever the damage, Moira and Curt could fix it - her faith in them was unshakeable. "Thank you," she managed at last. "You didn't have to tell me any of this, and I appreciate it." Perhaps now she'd be able to process the whole incident.
"You are most welcome, Amanda." Ororo knew she didn't need to reiterate the need for discretion; that didn't mean she wasn't tempted to, just in case. "This was a most difficult and distressing situation for everyone involved... it is my hope that now we can begin to adjust and move forward."
"You and me both." Again it slipped out, and Amanda cursed inside her head. Talk about looking like a complete needy basket case. "I don't know if there's anything, but if I can help at all, well, I'd like to offer. Marius... well, lets just say I know something about getting into things that're bigger than you." She wasn't sure why she'd said it, except that she remembered a conversation with the Australian boy almost a year ago now, the unexpected kindness there.
"Thank you. I do not know of anything that needs to be done at this time, but I am sure your support will be appreciated by both students." She almost said something about passing the well-wishes along, but she wasn't sure if Marius would welcome seeing her quite yet. "I hope I have managed to set your mind at ease somewhat. I know it can be frustrating, not being able to have all the information, but we must think of Marius and Jennie's privacy first."
"You have. And I appreciate it." And Amanda did - she hadn't had much contact with the other woman, even whilst in the school, but the calm, professional tone had done more to reassure her than anything else could have. "Like I said, I don't think I have any right to know, but I'm glad you thought to tell me what you could" Scrubbing her hand through her hair, she grimaced. "It was pointed out that this whole thing was a bit personal for me, which'd be why Remy shipped me off to bloody Albany in the first place. But I'm not about to do anything stupid and I'm glad everything's being taken care of." Well, almost everything - Amanda was feeling the growning conviction there was one thing she was going to have to do to lay things to rest and move on at last.
"We will certainly do our best," Ororo assured her. She was glad that Amanda was feeling better now; sometimes making an exception made all the difference. "If there is anything else I can do to help, or any other questions I can answer, do not hesitate to contact me again. I would be happy to speak with you anytime." Despite the formality of her words, her tone was genuine, and she was smiling on the other end of the phone.
"Thanks, Ms. Munroe. I'll be in touch if there's anything else, definitely. Thanks." Amanda picked up on the tone, and smiled herself. She could see why Remy preferred dealing with her than with Summers. "And I should let you go - you've probably got plenty of work to be going on with. I know I do."
"Of course. Work springs eternal," Ororo replied with a chuckle. "Have a good afternoon, Amanda. Be well."
"You too, Ms. Munroe." Amanda smiled at the chuckle. "And thanks again." And with that she hung up, feeling much lighter than she had before. Worried, yes, about Manuel, but at least her faith in him hadn't been entirely unjustified.
She just hoped it would be enough for Manuel himself.
Ororo looked at the phone on her desk, then away at the window longingly. While she had just about concluded her business in the office for the afternoon, there was still one more thing that needed doing. The trouble was, it wasn't exactly the easiest thing in the world.
But duty was duty, and she was nothing if not dedicated.
Dialing the number for Snow Valley's main office, she greeted Mark as he picked up and requested to be transferred to Amanda's number. When she heard the British girl's 'hello' she cleared her throat and sat up a little straighter in her chair. "Amanda, hello. This is Ororo Munroe, from the mansion."
Amanda sat up, toppling one of her piles of files. She'd decided to follow the example of, well, everybody just about, and throw herself into work as a distraction. And to stop checking her email every five minutes. "Um, Ms. Munroe, hello," she stammered, trying to restack things without sounding like a complete twit. "What can I do for you?"
"It is more a matter of what I can do for you, I believe," Ororo responded. "I received your email, and I was calling to see if Remy or Wanda had informed you any further about the situation with Manuel." She knew the Professor hadn't - it was actually under his urging that she was making this call now. He assumed that Amanda would be more welcoming of a call from her, considering the long history between himself and Amanda.
"Oh, right, my email. Of course." Now she really did feel like a twit. "Um, no, Remy and Wanda haven't said anything yet - think they're still cleaning up things and want to check with you lot about what can be said." Her palms were suddenly sweaty, and she adjusted her grip on the telephone. Now it came to it, she wasn't sure she could handle the answers to her questions. "Sorry if I was out of line asking, only... well, I explained in the email. Is he... that is, can I ask if he's going to be all right?"
"You were not out of line asking," Ororo assured her, trying to keep her tone warm and reassuring. It was harder than usual, for some reason. "Though I would ask that anything I tell you remain in your confidence, I would be glad to answer your questions. To begin with, Manuel is still in the hospital in Monaco, though I am told his condition continues to improve, albeit slowly. Marie was with him through the weekend, and she tells me the doctors are cautiously optimistic about his chances for recovery."
Some of the tension drained out of her and Amanda slumped a little in her seat. Improvement was good. "Of course I won't say anything - it's like the medlab and the patient confidentiality thing. Can you tell me what happened to him?" She asked the question hesitantly, not sure if she wanted the truth. If the X-Men had been involved, if he'd hurt anyone...
"It is a difficult situation to explain. When we located Marius and Jennie, they were... less than happy about being found. Unfortunately, this degenerated into a pursuit, and while Jennie and Manuel were fleeing, Jennie had a powers incident that resulted in a backlash of luck. I was not there to witness it, but I believe what happened is that a truck was affected and Jennie was nearly hit by it, only to be pushed out of the way by Manuel. He was hit instead."
That bloody macho heroic streak of his... Amanda closed her eyes, trying not to see the mental images that insisted on unspooling in her mind. "A truck..." Her voice shook a bit, and she reminded herself that Ororo had said he was recovering. Then something else the headmistress had told her registered. "You said they were less than happy to be found... was that..." She swallowed the lump in her throat, tasting acid. "Did Manuel use his powers on them?" It came out as a choked whisper. "Did anyone else get hurt?"
"No," came Ororo's immediate response; she hated to hear the pain in the younger woman's voice. "Because of the nature of Marius' power, he absorbs other mutant's powers without always gaining the control necessary to keep them in check. It seems earlier this summer, Manuel allowed Marius to feed on him, and because of that..." She trailed off, unsure if more needed to be said on the subject. "There were other injuries," she added obliquely, "but nothing permanent. Everyone will recover, with time."
"Oh, thank fuck for that." It burst out before Amanda could stop it, the relief obvious. She'd been right to hope, to believe there was still some decency there. And the news of Marius was hitting just a little too close to home. Desperate people do desperate things. "I'm sorry, I just... they said it was his fault, and I couldn't..." Pull yourself togther, Sefton. "I'm sorry," she said again, taking a deep shuddering breath and cutting the babble. "Jennie and Marius are back at the school, I know that. You lot will see they're okay. But what about Manuel? Do you know what's happening with him?"
"As far as I know," Ororo said, pulling up a file on her computer and scrolling through it. "He will remain in the hospital for the time being, until he is stable enough to be moved. After that... there has been the suggestion of moving him to Muir, for continued observation." It seemed like a good plan to her, and she knew Moira was practically insistent upon it. "I am afraid I cannot say for sure when that will be."
Again the relief. Muir was a good place, even if he hated hospitals. Whatever the damage, Moira and Curt could fix it - her faith in them was unshakeable. "Thank you," she managed at last. "You didn't have to tell me any of this, and I appreciate it." Perhaps now she'd be able to process the whole incident.
"You are most welcome, Amanda." Ororo knew she didn't need to reiterate the need for discretion; that didn't mean she wasn't tempted to, just in case. "This was a most difficult and distressing situation for everyone involved... it is my hope that now we can begin to adjust and move forward."
"You and me both." Again it slipped out, and Amanda cursed inside her head. Talk about looking like a complete needy basket case. "I don't know if there's anything, but if I can help at all, well, I'd like to offer. Marius... well, lets just say I know something about getting into things that're bigger than you." She wasn't sure why she'd said it, except that she remembered a conversation with the Australian boy almost a year ago now, the unexpected kindness there.
"Thank you. I do not know of anything that needs to be done at this time, but I am sure your support will be appreciated by both students." She almost said something about passing the well-wishes along, but she wasn't sure if Marius would welcome seeing her quite yet. "I hope I have managed to set your mind at ease somewhat. I know it can be frustrating, not being able to have all the information, but we must think of Marius and Jennie's privacy first."
"You have. And I appreciate it." And Amanda did - she hadn't had much contact with the other woman, even whilst in the school, but the calm, professional tone had done more to reassure her than anything else could have. "Like I said, I don't think I have any right to know, but I'm glad you thought to tell me what you could" Scrubbing her hand through her hair, she grimaced. "It was pointed out that this whole thing was a bit personal for me, which'd be why Remy shipped me off to bloody Albany in the first place. But I'm not about to do anything stupid and I'm glad everything's being taken care of." Well, almost everything - Amanda was feeling the growning conviction there was one thing she was going to have to do to lay things to rest and move on at last.
"We will certainly do our best," Ororo assured her. She was glad that Amanda was feeling better now; sometimes making an exception made all the difference. "If there is anything else I can do to help, or any other questions I can answer, do not hesitate to contact me again. I would be happy to speak with you anytime." Despite the formality of her words, her tone was genuine, and she was smiling on the other end of the phone.
"Thanks, Ms. Munroe. I'll be in touch if there's anything else, definitely. Thanks." Amanda picked up on the tone, and smiled herself. She could see why Remy preferred dealing with her than with Summers. "And I should let you go - you've probably got plenty of work to be going on with. I know I do."
"Of course. Work springs eternal," Ororo replied with a chuckle. "Have a good afternoon, Amanda. Be well."
"You too, Ms. Munroe." Amanda smiled at the chuckle. "And thanks again." And with that she hung up, feeling much lighter than she had before. Worried, yes, about Manuel, but at least her faith in him hadn't been entirely unjustified.
She just hoped it would be enough for Manuel himself.
