Amanda, Forge - late Monday night
Dec. 12th, 2006 02:36 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xp_daytripper posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsFollowing an evening of movies, Amanda ends up sleeping on the couch in Angelo and Forge's suite. Pity no-one mentioned that to Forge.
Forge blinked as he looked out the window, taking a small break from sending yet another batch of emails to prospective HeliX members. The sun wouldn't be up for another few hours, and the occasional glint of the moon through the clouds reflected off the light snow and the lake in the distance.
The fact that his powers drastically reduced his need for sleep was usually a blessing, but in some cases it resulted in Forge being acutely aware of how long a night awake could actually be. Under normal circumstances he would pass the time down in his lab, but given that Angelo had only just returned from Oman, he'd chosen to stay in the suite in case the older mutant had another nightmare and could use someone to talk to.
There'd definitely been talking earlier, though. Angelo and a definitely female voice, at least what of it Forge could hear through his headphones. While Angelo and Sarah were politely discreet about their relationship, Forge wasn't one to risk hearing anything accidentally called out which would potentially scar his brain.
At the moment, however, the common area of the suite was dark and quiet. Hearing his stomach rumble, Forge decided it was time for a snack. Opening his door quietly, he slipped into the small kitchenette, opening the refrigerator and pulling out the cold roast beef sandwich he'd stashed after dinner. Feeling his way around in the dark, he bumped into the side of the couch, flopping down bonelessly with sandwich in hand.
The last thing he expected was for the couch to be occupied.
There was a yelp and a flash of light and Forge was rapidly deposited on the floor. By the reddish-blue glow of the shielding spell surrounding her, Amanda peered at him, blinking and confused. She'd been asleep for a good while, and to say the sudden weight on her legs was a shock was something of an understatement. Sitting up, clutching the blanket to her chest (she was wearing one of Angelo's t-shirts, donated to the cause of sleepwear), her hair tousled every which way, she looked a bit like a startled possum. "Wha?" she managed, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.
Forge grunted as he met the floor with his knees, then his head, rolling over onto his back. "Holycrapow..." he moaned, sitting up and blinking his eyes at the sudden glow. "What in the hell are you... Amanda?"
Finding the teenaged witch on the couch was somewhat of a shock, although Forge knew she and Angelo were close. Although if she was on the couch, then... "Where's Angelo?" he muttered, patting around the floor for what remained of his sandwich.
"Oh, bollocks..." Amanda clapped her hands, softly, and the shield winked out. To be replaced by George the werelight as she realised what she'd done and who it was. With a flick of her fingers, she sent the light down to assist Forge in sandwich-location. "Fuck, I'm sorry, mate. I didn't... you all right?" Then she registered the actual question and half-shrugged. "He's in his bed. Where else at this time of night?" When sane people are sleeping, her tone implied.
"But if he's there, and you're out..." Forge stammered for a moment, gesturing from the couch to Angelo's room with a confused look on his face. "I mean, I know you guys are close but he and Sarah are close, and I heard him and her earlier - or wait, that was probably you, I suppose that makes more sense, but--" Forge's babbling was cut off by a squishing noise as one questing hand found the remnants of a lint-covered sandwich. "Ew. He had you sleep on the couch?"
Just as well it was dark - that way he couldn't see the sudden colouring of her face. Bloody blush reflex. She was going to have to work on that. "Where else would I sleep?" she asked, very slight note of defensiveness edging her voice. "I dropped 'round to see him after he got back and it got a bit late to drive home, so Ange said I could crash here."
Forge cocked his head, then blushed deep enough to be evident in the neon glow of the werelight. "Oh, I just assumed... well, I suppose that makes sense. But if you're tired, I know the couch isn't the most comfortable. If you want, you can..." He jerked his head in the direction of his room as he shuffled towards the kitchen to dispose of the squashed sandwich. "I'm not sleeping, anyway."
"Yeah, I kind of noticed you weren't," Amanda said wryly. Underneath the blanket, she pulled her legs up, resting her chin on them. "And I'm awake for now. Still sleeping weird since China. Thanks any way." Forge knew about Xorn, so there was no harm in the reference. "Working on anything specific that's keeping you up?"
"No, I just don't sleep much. Side effect of my big mutant brain," Forge explained. "I mean, there's stuff I could be doing, but with Angelo just getting back..." He paused, then moved over to lean against the couch. "He's been having nightmares, since Smichov. I don't know how regular, but one was bad enough to wake me up,
and when I do sleep it's about as sound as you can get. So I figured, in case this was anything like that, y'know, he could probably use someone here."
"He could." Amanda looked over at Forge with gratitude on her face. "It's fire... he's been badly burnt, a couple of times, and in Smichov... well, there was a burning building, and people trapped. He wasn't hurt and they helped the people but, well..." She trailled off awkwardly. "I'm glad you're looking out for him. I... haven't been around much, this last couple of months."
"You're around enough," Forge offered, scooting down to take over the far end of the couch. "I know most of the kids here get through the week just to look forward to your trips into the city. And Angelo's a good guy, he's not about to think his friends have abandoned him just because you're both busy. He's got the trainee stuff, and Elpis, and you've got what it is you do for Pete..." He trailed off, giving Amanda a direct look. "What you're doing there... I'm not going to ask for details, but... it's good work, right? Not the kind of stuff that has you inviting Nathaniel Essex over for beer and pizza?"
The smile that had appeared at the beginning of Forge's words turned into a revolted face. "Fuck, no!" she exclaimed, and then glanced guiltily at Angelo's door. Oops, too loud. "No fucking way are we anything to do with that bastard," she continued, dropping her tone into a vehement murmur. "The reason he got in the door at all - the only reason - is because Pete figured he wouldn't have been so stupid as to not have something up his sleeve. He was right about China, but that isn't to say we're about to go into business with the cunt."
Biting on her thumbnail a little, she went on, a bit less forcefully. "We do good. If we didn't, I'd be out of there tomorrow. Some of the ways we do it aren't always the most ethical, but sometimes you really don't get a choice. And China... Xorn might have said he couldn't destroy the world, but from what I saw in there, he could have made a hell of a mess if we hadn't helped him." Dropping her hand, she grinned at him. "Don't know if anyone's said, but thanks for the fancy helmet you made. Stopped us from being the next crispy fried Chinese special."
Forge nodded with a smirk. "That's because I'm the greatest. And the inimitable Mister Essex can jump up my butt if he thinks my getting emotionally involved in my work makes me any less of a genius." He chuckled quietly, then stared down at the couch, watching Amanda's feet under the blanket. "I know it's necessary sometimes to break the rules to accomplish a greater good. I'm not naive enough to think otherwise. But you stay with that too long... I don't know, I mean, I've seen that thousand-yard stare Remy gets, and you have to wonder what a lifetime of making those decisions does. I don't envy it."
"Ew. I wouldn't want Essex anywhere near my butt," Amanda joked, all the while considering what Forge had said. "It's hard, sometimes," she admitted. "Doing the job, making the decisions. But, what we do, it's not that different from the team. They go out, saving the world, doing the hero thing, and they do it well. They do good work." It was rare to hear the Brit admit to that aloud. "And then there's us. We do what we do because it needs doing, because no-one else can. Or will, sometimes. We do the job, and that's enough for me."
"That's a fair assessment," Forge admitted, "And a respectable one. We do what we can with what we're given, the Professor says. Not everyone can do what you guys do. And I really can't see you in leather. Well, I can, but not... I mean..." He stuttered for a moment, trying to backtrack. "Not that leather. Not that it wouldn't look... I mean, I didn't mean it like... whoa, hey, since we're both up, want a drink? Soda, I mean. Or water. We don't have anything like... stronger, I mean. Water?"
Laughing at Forge's babbling and the image of herself in X-Men leathers, Amanda managed to nod. "Water's fine."
Forge blinked as he looked out the window, taking a small break from sending yet another batch of emails to prospective HeliX members. The sun wouldn't be up for another few hours, and the occasional glint of the moon through the clouds reflected off the light snow and the lake in the distance.
The fact that his powers drastically reduced his need for sleep was usually a blessing, but in some cases it resulted in Forge being acutely aware of how long a night awake could actually be. Under normal circumstances he would pass the time down in his lab, but given that Angelo had only just returned from Oman, he'd chosen to stay in the suite in case the older mutant had another nightmare and could use someone to talk to.
There'd definitely been talking earlier, though. Angelo and a definitely female voice, at least what of it Forge could hear through his headphones. While Angelo and Sarah were politely discreet about their relationship, Forge wasn't one to risk hearing anything accidentally called out which would potentially scar his brain.
At the moment, however, the common area of the suite was dark and quiet. Hearing his stomach rumble, Forge decided it was time for a snack. Opening his door quietly, he slipped into the small kitchenette, opening the refrigerator and pulling out the cold roast beef sandwich he'd stashed after dinner. Feeling his way around in the dark, he bumped into the side of the couch, flopping down bonelessly with sandwich in hand.
The last thing he expected was for the couch to be occupied.
There was a yelp and a flash of light and Forge was rapidly deposited on the floor. By the reddish-blue glow of the shielding spell surrounding her, Amanda peered at him, blinking and confused. She'd been asleep for a good while, and to say the sudden weight on her legs was a shock was something of an understatement. Sitting up, clutching the blanket to her chest (she was wearing one of Angelo's t-shirts, donated to the cause of sleepwear), her hair tousled every which way, she looked a bit like a startled possum. "Wha?" she managed, rubbing sleep out of her eyes.
Forge grunted as he met the floor with his knees, then his head, rolling over onto his back. "Holycrapow..." he moaned, sitting up and blinking his eyes at the sudden glow. "What in the hell are you... Amanda?"
Finding the teenaged witch on the couch was somewhat of a shock, although Forge knew she and Angelo were close. Although if she was on the couch, then... "Where's Angelo?" he muttered, patting around the floor for what remained of his sandwich.
"Oh, bollocks..." Amanda clapped her hands, softly, and the shield winked out. To be replaced by George the werelight as she realised what she'd done and who it was. With a flick of her fingers, she sent the light down to assist Forge in sandwich-location. "Fuck, I'm sorry, mate. I didn't... you all right?" Then she registered the actual question and half-shrugged. "He's in his bed. Where else at this time of night?" When sane people are sleeping, her tone implied.
"But if he's there, and you're out..." Forge stammered for a moment, gesturing from the couch to Angelo's room with a confused look on his face. "I mean, I know you guys are close but he and Sarah are close, and I heard him and her earlier - or wait, that was probably you, I suppose that makes more sense, but--" Forge's babbling was cut off by a squishing noise as one questing hand found the remnants of a lint-covered sandwich. "Ew. He had you sleep on the couch?"
Just as well it was dark - that way he couldn't see the sudden colouring of her face. Bloody blush reflex. She was going to have to work on that. "Where else would I sleep?" she asked, very slight note of defensiveness edging her voice. "I dropped 'round to see him after he got back and it got a bit late to drive home, so Ange said I could crash here."
Forge cocked his head, then blushed deep enough to be evident in the neon glow of the werelight. "Oh, I just assumed... well, I suppose that makes sense. But if you're tired, I know the couch isn't the most comfortable. If you want, you can..." He jerked his head in the direction of his room as he shuffled towards the kitchen to dispose of the squashed sandwich. "I'm not sleeping, anyway."
"Yeah, I kind of noticed you weren't," Amanda said wryly. Underneath the blanket, she pulled her legs up, resting her chin on them. "And I'm awake for now. Still sleeping weird since China. Thanks any way." Forge knew about Xorn, so there was no harm in the reference. "Working on anything specific that's keeping you up?"
"No, I just don't sleep much. Side effect of my big mutant brain," Forge explained. "I mean, there's stuff I could be doing, but with Angelo just getting back..." He paused, then moved over to lean against the couch. "He's been having nightmares, since Smichov. I don't know how regular, but one was bad enough to wake me up,
and when I do sleep it's about as sound as you can get. So I figured, in case this was anything like that, y'know, he could probably use someone here."
"He could." Amanda looked over at Forge with gratitude on her face. "It's fire... he's been badly burnt, a couple of times, and in Smichov... well, there was a burning building, and people trapped. He wasn't hurt and they helped the people but, well..." She trailled off awkwardly. "I'm glad you're looking out for him. I... haven't been around much, this last couple of months."
"You're around enough," Forge offered, scooting down to take over the far end of the couch. "I know most of the kids here get through the week just to look forward to your trips into the city. And Angelo's a good guy, he's not about to think his friends have abandoned him just because you're both busy. He's got the trainee stuff, and Elpis, and you've got what it is you do for Pete..." He trailed off, giving Amanda a direct look. "What you're doing there... I'm not going to ask for details, but... it's good work, right? Not the kind of stuff that has you inviting Nathaniel Essex over for beer and pizza?"
The smile that had appeared at the beginning of Forge's words turned into a revolted face. "Fuck, no!" she exclaimed, and then glanced guiltily at Angelo's door. Oops, too loud. "No fucking way are we anything to do with that bastard," she continued, dropping her tone into a vehement murmur. "The reason he got in the door at all - the only reason - is because Pete figured he wouldn't have been so stupid as to not have something up his sleeve. He was right about China, but that isn't to say we're about to go into business with the cunt."
Biting on her thumbnail a little, she went on, a bit less forcefully. "We do good. If we didn't, I'd be out of there tomorrow. Some of the ways we do it aren't always the most ethical, but sometimes you really don't get a choice. And China... Xorn might have said he couldn't destroy the world, but from what I saw in there, he could have made a hell of a mess if we hadn't helped him." Dropping her hand, she grinned at him. "Don't know if anyone's said, but thanks for the fancy helmet you made. Stopped us from being the next crispy fried Chinese special."
Forge nodded with a smirk. "That's because I'm the greatest. And the inimitable Mister Essex can jump up my butt if he thinks my getting emotionally involved in my work makes me any less of a genius." He chuckled quietly, then stared down at the couch, watching Amanda's feet under the blanket. "I know it's necessary sometimes to break the rules to accomplish a greater good. I'm not naive enough to think otherwise. But you stay with that too long... I don't know, I mean, I've seen that thousand-yard stare Remy gets, and you have to wonder what a lifetime of making those decisions does. I don't envy it."
"Ew. I wouldn't want Essex anywhere near my butt," Amanda joked, all the while considering what Forge had said. "It's hard, sometimes," she admitted. "Doing the job, making the decisions. But, what we do, it's not that different from the team. They go out, saving the world, doing the hero thing, and they do it well. They do good work." It was rare to hear the Brit admit to that aloud. "And then there's us. We do what we do because it needs doing, because no-one else can. Or will, sometimes. We do the job, and that's enough for me."
"That's a fair assessment," Forge admitted, "And a respectable one. We do what we can with what we're given, the Professor says. Not everyone can do what you guys do. And I really can't see you in leather. Well, I can, but not... I mean..." He stuttered for a moment, trying to backtrack. "Not that leather. Not that it wouldn't look... I mean, I didn't mean it like... whoa, hey, since we're both up, want a drink? Soda, I mean. Or water. We don't have anything like... stronger, I mean. Water?"
Laughing at Forge's babbling and the image of herself in X-Men leathers, Amanda managed to nod. "Water's fine."
