Clarice, Yvette// Mondo, Yvette - Friday morning.

[x-penance.livejournal.com]

Two more 'meeting the new girl' logs. First up, Clarice delivers the promised gloves and socks, making for a happy Yvette.



"~What am I going to do?~" Yvette muttered to herself in Albanian, staring at the closed door helplessly. Laurie was normally very good about leaving the door a little ajar for her roommate, but sometimes, being a little absent-minded, she forgot. Like today. Not normally a problem, given the other girls living in the suite, but today there was no-one to be heard. And her hands were too sharp to get a grip on the doorknob.

Clarice knocked on the door, a shopping bag slung over one arm, "Yvette?" she called, hoping the girl was in. She had a surprise for her and she hoped the other girl would like it.

At last, help... "Hello? I am being stuck - can you be opening the door?" she called back, hoping it was someone she knew but right now willing to brave a stranger. She didn't recognise the voice...

"Certainly," Clarice opened the door, trying not to be overly amused that the younger girl couldn't open the door without destroying it. That she had waited for help and not destroyed the door was a good sign though. "Sorry, had a brain fart," she said, coming in, "I'm Clarice."

"Thank you very much," Yvette said as the door swung open, revealing a... very purple girl. Still, compared to what Yvette saw every morning in the mirror, it wasn't so strange. "Pleased to be meeting you, Miss Clarice," she said, wishing she could smile back. "You are the person who is making these clothings for me, yes?" She plucked at the cloth covering her thin wrist, the self-repairing material replacing the hole as soon as it was made.

"Absotively, posilutely," she replied, dumping the bag upside down, revealing a pile of multicoloured fabric, "I come bearing gloves, socks, and other fun goodies!" Clarice held up a red glove and a blue glove to show her.

Yvette blinked. Were those words? She didn't remember seeing them in her dictionary. But then she caught sight of the gloves, and a happy little noise escaped her. "Colours too? I was thinking Mr. Forge's magic cloth was only black?"

"Forge only deals in black, I work in technicolor," Clarice informed her. She didn't have much in different colors and no patterns at all, "I convinced him that gloves would be seen and not covered like the bodysuit, so there are options."

The red clashed with her skin, being a slightly lighter shade, so she reached for the blue, careful not to touch Clarice's hand. "You are being very kind, to be making these things for me."

"Of course! I like making clothing and this is a good reason to make it!" Clarice decided that Yvette was nice, "Listen, I have to get back for class, but let me know if you need more or whatever. In the winter, we can line them or something. If you're cold."

Yvette had managed to pull one glove on and was experimenting with the lack of damage, running her talons over the desk with no scratches. "Of course. Thank you very much, Miss Clarice," she said, sounding far happier than she had.

"It's just Clarice. Or Pixie, have fun!" Clarice grinned, pleased that her clothing was able to change someones life. That was what she wanted, to help people, "See ya!" she opened a teleportation disk and headed away.

If the purple hadn't startled her over much, then the older girl's departure did. Yvette was left looking open-mouthed at the spot Clarice had been, with nothing but the bag of clothes to prove the purple girl had even been there.



***

A little later, Mondo drops by to cheer the newcomer up. It's touch and go for a while.




Mondo knocked on the new girl's door out of deference for her recently-traumatized state. He was so looking forward to meeting her - she definitely needed a little bit of good cheer in her life. People liked to be happy, and Mondo liked helping people to feel happy. He couldn't help but let his mind spin wild scenarios - maybe she'd like Hawai'ian shirts, or have a deep and abiding affection for Sesame Street.

The knock, as they always did, startled her, and she took a moment to collect herself before answering, voice soft and a little nervous: "H-hello? Please to be coming in?"

"Sure!" said Mondo in his usual boisterous voice. He opened up her door and stepped into her room, closing the door behind him. "Hi!" he said cheerfully. "My name is Mondo, and I wanted to say 'Welcome!' to Xavier's!"

With a slight squeak of alarm, Yvette drew back. The new person was big and loud and his clothes were very bright. "T-thank you?" she replied doubtfully, about an inch away from diving under the desk. "I am being Yvette."

"I know." he said, cheerfully oblivious to Yvette's distress. "I just thought you could use a little cheering-up. You speak English very well." he added in an attempt to be reassuring.

Habit made her clasp her hands behind her back, even with Clarice's gloves. "I am being fine," she said, sounding as confused as she felt, even if it didn't show on her face, what with the lack of expression. "Thank you, I am learning it in school, back home." Summoning up her courage - this newcomer didn't seem angry, just very loud and cheerful - she asked: "Where are you coming from?"

"Samoa!" he said with a big wide smile. "It's an island in the South Pacific." he elaborated. "It's always warm there, even in winter. Lots of palm trees and warm water to swim in."

"Such a long way away!" she said, eyes widening. "Are you being missing your home?"

"Of course I do." he said with another cheerful smile. "But I like seeing new places and meeting new people." he said. "Samoa is not a very diverse place, really. Japan was exotic for me - I used to live in Japan - but even Japan is pretty much the same, people-wise. America is _vast_." he said, eyes wide with the wonder of it all.

"It is," Yvette agreed softly. "Although I am only seeing a small part." Which was pretty much the school. "I was asleep when I am being brought here."

Mondo smiled at that too. "I try to take at least one nap a day. I like naps." he said. "And when you're more comfortable and ready to see more of America you should come with us into New York City. Believe me - you'll see at least one of everything you could possibly imagine."

"I am spending six months asleep. I am trying to be awake for a little while," she replied, a hint of humour entering her voice. This Mondo was no threat, she was seeing it now. "The way I am looking... it make frighten to people. I would not like to be making trouble for the other students in New York."

Mondo sheepishly nodded. "I can understand that." he said, then rallied. "And you should just be you." he said firmly. "Everyone is different or unique in their own way." he added. "You're no
different." And to prove his point, he concentrated for a second, asking his steel necklace if he could borrow its traits. He felt its energy course through his body, then he extended a hand to Yvette.

Yvette eyed the extended hand dubiously. True she had the gloves Clarice had made for her now, but she was still deathly afraid of hurting people. And Mondo's hand looked no different than usual. "I am not wanting to be hurting you," she said softly.

"You won't." he said with a smile. "Trust me, OK? I'm not fond of pain and I don't want to get anyone in trouble. I just wanted to show you that some of us are not afraid." he said. "I have my own power, just like you have yours."

With a small nod and remembering Paige and Angel and Forge, Yvette slipped off the glove and reached her hand towards Mondo's. Even with the unnaturally long fingers, his hand was much bigger than hers. Her eyes widened as nothing happened. "How are you be doing this?" she asked, curiously poking at his palm and feeling unyielding hard flesh.

"It's complicated." he said with a pleased grin. "My gift is that I can borrow traits from the world around me. In this case, the solidity of my necklace." he said with a faint blush to his cheeks. "That's how I'm not getting hurt right now."

"But you are not looking like steel..." Yvette poked again, realising she couldn't offend this boy at all. "It is very strange, there are being so many people I can't cut here. You and Mr. Forge and Angel and Paige..."

"There's no visible change, that's true." he said with an impressive shrug of his bulk. "Mr Forge can be cut if you happen to brush up against his regular body parts, so I'd be careful with him. Paige can hold up fine when husked. Me, if I'm holding something solid enough, like my steel, I'll be fine. See? It's not all bad! Small starts, and I'm sure you'll get the knack real soon!"

Yvette pulled her hand back and replaced the glove. "I am to be learning," she said with quiet determination. "But it is good, knowing there are being people who I can't hurt on accident."

Mondo gave Yvette a beatific smile. "You'll get it." he said with absolute faith. "But I have a question for you. Do you know Sesame Street?" he asked with a big ol' grin.

There was a sudden brightening of those glowing blue eyes, and a small nod. "Sunny days, yes?" she asked, humming the opening theme music. "I am watching it sometimes with my cousins, back in Kosovo when I am small."

Mondo almost sprained his neck nodding. "That's the one! And wow, Kosovo, huh? Where's that? Well, anyway, I was thinking - there's a TV right out here, and we have Sesame Street on DVD. It's one of my favorite shows, and I was wondering if you'd like to watch some of it with me?" he asked, batting his baby browns at her outrageously.

Personally Yvette thought Mondo was a little old for 'Sesame Street' (he was older than she was), but his enthusiasm was infectious. And she had a tendency to hide too much in her room, and she'd had six months of hiding. "Yes, I would be liking that, thank you, Mondo," she said. "And I can be telling you about my country too, yes?"

"I'd love to hear all about it!" he said happily, stepping back out of her room to go prep the DVD player in her common area. This was going to be _so good_ ... he got her out of her room and watching TV with him, and hey, Sesame Street wasn't going to get old any time real soon.

Mission accomplished.