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xp_logsBack from Muir, Angelo drops by the brownstone to give Amanda her Christmas present.
The sound of her intercom buzzing had come far too early in the morning, and Amanda was still half-asleep as she wandered down to the lobby. Half-asleep and half-dressed - she was still in the men's pyjama pants she kept around for slobbing around the house, and a Sex Pistols tank-top that had definitely seen better days. When she saw Angelo through the glass of the front door, however, she smiled, ineffectually trying to smooth down sleep-rumpled hair. "Hey, Ange," she mouthed, then moved to the intercom so she could talk to him. Holding down the button, she continued. "Just back from Muir, are you? Have a good Christmas?"
He grinned, reaching for the button on his side. "I really did. An' yeah, just off the plane, except for droppin' off Mom. She sent food an' presents."
"Wouldn't be your mum if there wasn't food." Amanda sounded pleased, however, even with the distortion of the intercom. "There's a box by the door for stuff to go through - just leave it there." She looked a little embarrassed. "And here I went and left you and your mum's presents upstairs. Is it all right if I get them to you when we get out of here? Decontaminating's a bastard."
Angelo nodded and deposited his armful in the box before returning to the intercom. "Not a problem. You got any idea yet when that's goin' to be?"
"Next day or two." Amanda shrugged. "No-one's gotten sick yet, and the tests are all coming back negative, so looks like we got lucky." Then she leaned forward, peering at Angelo through the glass. "You sure things went okay at Muir, Ange? You look like someone's put you through the mincer. And considering you don't bruise that easy..." She trailled off, looking worriedly at him. "Did something happen?"
"Nothin' happened on Muir", he assured her hastily. "An' nothin' happened you need to be worried about. Just a trainin' exercise for the team... that kind of involved me callin' Logan out for a boxin' match." The last was said very quickly.
"Well, that's a reli-- wait, you called out Logan? For a fight?" The worried look was replaced by an incredulous one. "What the fucking hell were you thinking, Ange? He must have beaten the utter shite out of you!"
"It was only one round", he protested, conveniently forgetting that he'd had every intention of trying for three. "An' I was makin' a point."
"What point? That you're mad as a box of badgers?" Amanda shook her head, still not quite believing this. "You're bloody lucky I can't get at you, mate, or I'd be smacking you meself, for being such an idiot." That out of her sytem, she sighed. "But if you had to do it, then you had to do it. Just... don't make a habit of it? Black and blue really doesn't suit you."
"That I could take him on an' walk away, even if I couldn't win without cheatin'", he contradicted. "An', yeah, I don't plan on it. Not with him, anyway. Still sparrin' with a few other people, an' some of the kids in self-defence are pretty good. Land hits an' everythin'."
"Hell, I train with Logan sometimes, trying to get to the point where I don't get my arse handed to me by every Tom, Dick and Harry. But I don't go 'round challenging him - he'd wipe the floor with me, magic or not." She shook her head at him, half-exasperated, half-worried. Apparently the headstrong barrio boy was still around - the thought was somehow comforting, knowing the Angelo she'd first met wasn't completely gone. "He works mostly with Sarah, tho', which is just as well, since she can keep up with him. And she's got a healing factor too," she added pointedly. "What'd your mum say when she saw you?"
"Take a guess", he said ruefully. "But it's only bruises mostly, so she was okay once I let her get the first-aid kit out an' do her thing with it."
"Hah. Wish I could have seen that." Her face softened a bit, tone growing wistful. "Wish I could have been there for the whole thing, actually. Bloody stupid bint. At least I won't be messing with Remy's mail again after this."
"Hey, you couldn't've known what it was", he reminded her. "Nobody saw this one comin'."
"Yeah, I know." The pout was still there, though. "'S just been a long bloody week." And long bloody weird week. "We're just getting a bit of cabin fever. I hope they let us out soon, if only for the sake of my liver. And I miss... people." There was the barest hesitation as she switched from what she'd been going to say.
"Only a day or two", Angelo quoted back at her. "An' hey, at least you had some people you get on with to have Christmas with. Better than bein' stuck in there on your own."
"Oh, it could have been a lot worse," she agreed. "Whole thing turned into some sort of weird team bonding thing. Tho' never trust Doug with mistletoe, that's all I can say."
"...no, I think I'm gonna need to hear the rest of that story. Potential blackmail, an' all."
She shook her head, cheeks turning a little pink. "Oh, I don't think you need any more blackmail material. Not when there's pictures of me in a pink dress around. Tho' I'm cursing no-one got Mark and Pete on film." She snickered. "Mark definitely got more than he expected with that one."
Angelo blinked. "Oh, now I have to ask for more. Is this still about mistletoe?"
"Not exactly. Mark had this... idea, where he wanted to kiss everyone on Christmas Day. So he goes up to Pete, gives him a little peck on the mouth, no horrible death." Amanda leaned against the door, getting into her story. "Then Pete gives him this look, then just grabs him and plants one right on him. Full on." She began giggling. "It was fucking hysterical, it really was."
Angelo leaned against his own side companionably, laughing. "Yeah, it sounds like it. Don't s'pose there's any CCTV where this happened?"
"No, buggerit. Doug was complaining that we hadn't put in the super security with the cameras and all. But the look on Mark's face... oh, man. I never thought I'd ever see him lost for words..." Amanda was almost giggling too much to hang onto the intercom button.
"Now, there's a memory to hang on to. An' maybe remind him of when he forgets about his Post-it."
"Or to scar the kids for life with. Next time they act up on the bus, I'm giving them the whole horrible story and threatening them with Pete smooches..." Her ribs ached, and she made an effort to stop laughing before she slid down the wall onto the floor. It was cold down there. "So, possibly a bit more exciting than your Christmas, yeah? No truth or dare or random snogging?"
"I spent Christmas with the Pack", he pointed out, amused. "Includin' Domino. Hell yes, there was truth or dare. An' Ian tryin' to get drunk even though he can't, to keep up the image of the scared father-to-be."
"The Pack's getting old, what with all the spawning," Amanda remarked, humorously. "I would have thought they'd have been all respectable and boring, but looks like I was wrong."
"That's what they've got Domino for. She's not tamed yet." He dug a hand in his pocket. "Got somethin' for you, by the way."
"The day Dom settles down is the day the world ends..." Amanda began, and then raised her eyebrows. "For me?" She bit her lip, considering the quarantine. "Open it for me? The decon team's not due for another hour and we can't open the door from this side."
Angelo nodded, fishing out the little package. "Sure thing. An' then we'll see if I'm gonna keep it for you, or what."
"Well, if it's pink, you just might end up keeping it," she teased, watching him with curious impatience. Small package, so it wasn't a CD or a bottle of something... what could it be?
A little jewellery box, as it turned out - bigger than a ring box, but not by very much. He held it up, teasing. "Want to see what's inside?"
Her eyes had widened a bit at the sight of the box. Wait, had she missed something here? Or was she actually still asleep and this one of those highly annoying - albeit, very nice - dreams she'd been having lately. "Um, sure," she said, trying to be nonchalant and not managing it very well. Hopefully he'd think she was just impatient to see her present.
Angelo laughed and let go of the intercom button to open the box.
As he opened it and held it up, she pressed closer to the door, peering through the glass at what was inside. Some sort of pendant on a chain... she couldn't make out what was actually on it, but she felt a bit of a thrill at the sight of it. Definitely something more thought-provoking than a CD. "It looks... nice," she said, cursing at her mental dictionary's sudden failure. "What's on the pendant?"
"It's a medallion of St. Jude", he told her, grinning. "Patron saint of desperate cases, lost causes an' bad situations."
That broke her out of the weird mood. An amused laugh broke from her, and she beamed at him. "One of those perfect presents, hey?" she teased, before sobering a little. The smile didn't leave her face, however. "Thanks, Ange. Really. This is... just wow."
Angelo beamed right back, pleased. "Thought you'd like it. Maybe it'll even be lucky."
"Maybe it will. Can't hurt, that's for sure." She pressed her hand flat against the glass. "Just as well I can't hug you - with all those bruises I might damage something."
"Hey, I'm not that fragile. An' you should've seen me a week ago."
She pulled a face at him. "Considering you look like something the cat dragged in now? Probably just as well I didn't." She grinned. "But expect me to test out how not-fragile you are when I get out of here."
Angelo laughed. "Lookin' forward to it."
The sound of her intercom buzzing had come far too early in the morning, and Amanda was still half-asleep as she wandered down to the lobby. Half-asleep and half-dressed - she was still in the men's pyjama pants she kept around for slobbing around the house, and a Sex Pistols tank-top that had definitely seen better days. When she saw Angelo through the glass of the front door, however, she smiled, ineffectually trying to smooth down sleep-rumpled hair. "Hey, Ange," she mouthed, then moved to the intercom so she could talk to him. Holding down the button, she continued. "Just back from Muir, are you? Have a good Christmas?"
He grinned, reaching for the button on his side. "I really did. An' yeah, just off the plane, except for droppin' off Mom. She sent food an' presents."
"Wouldn't be your mum if there wasn't food." Amanda sounded pleased, however, even with the distortion of the intercom. "There's a box by the door for stuff to go through - just leave it there." She looked a little embarrassed. "And here I went and left you and your mum's presents upstairs. Is it all right if I get them to you when we get out of here? Decontaminating's a bastard."
Angelo nodded and deposited his armful in the box before returning to the intercom. "Not a problem. You got any idea yet when that's goin' to be?"
"Next day or two." Amanda shrugged. "No-one's gotten sick yet, and the tests are all coming back negative, so looks like we got lucky." Then she leaned forward, peering at Angelo through the glass. "You sure things went okay at Muir, Ange? You look like someone's put you through the mincer. And considering you don't bruise that easy..." She trailled off, looking worriedly at him. "Did something happen?"
"Nothin' happened on Muir", he assured her hastily. "An' nothin' happened you need to be worried about. Just a trainin' exercise for the team... that kind of involved me callin' Logan out for a boxin' match." The last was said very quickly.
"Well, that's a reli-- wait, you called out Logan? For a fight?" The worried look was replaced by an incredulous one. "What the fucking hell were you thinking, Ange? He must have beaten the utter shite out of you!"
"It was only one round", he protested, conveniently forgetting that he'd had every intention of trying for three. "An' I was makin' a point."
"What point? That you're mad as a box of badgers?" Amanda shook her head, still not quite believing this. "You're bloody lucky I can't get at you, mate, or I'd be smacking you meself, for being such an idiot." That out of her sytem, she sighed. "But if you had to do it, then you had to do it. Just... don't make a habit of it? Black and blue really doesn't suit you."
"That I could take him on an' walk away, even if I couldn't win without cheatin'", he contradicted. "An', yeah, I don't plan on it. Not with him, anyway. Still sparrin' with a few other people, an' some of the kids in self-defence are pretty good. Land hits an' everythin'."
"Hell, I train with Logan sometimes, trying to get to the point where I don't get my arse handed to me by every Tom, Dick and Harry. But I don't go 'round challenging him - he'd wipe the floor with me, magic or not." She shook her head at him, half-exasperated, half-worried. Apparently the headstrong barrio boy was still around - the thought was somehow comforting, knowing the Angelo she'd first met wasn't completely gone. "He works mostly with Sarah, tho', which is just as well, since she can keep up with him. And she's got a healing factor too," she added pointedly. "What'd your mum say when she saw you?"
"Take a guess", he said ruefully. "But it's only bruises mostly, so she was okay once I let her get the first-aid kit out an' do her thing with it."
"Hah. Wish I could have seen that." Her face softened a bit, tone growing wistful. "Wish I could have been there for the whole thing, actually. Bloody stupid bint. At least I won't be messing with Remy's mail again after this."
"Hey, you couldn't've known what it was", he reminded her. "Nobody saw this one comin'."
"Yeah, I know." The pout was still there, though. "'S just been a long bloody week." And long bloody weird week. "We're just getting a bit of cabin fever. I hope they let us out soon, if only for the sake of my liver. And I miss... people." There was the barest hesitation as she switched from what she'd been going to say.
"Only a day or two", Angelo quoted back at her. "An' hey, at least you had some people you get on with to have Christmas with. Better than bein' stuck in there on your own."
"Oh, it could have been a lot worse," she agreed. "Whole thing turned into some sort of weird team bonding thing. Tho' never trust Doug with mistletoe, that's all I can say."
"...no, I think I'm gonna need to hear the rest of that story. Potential blackmail, an' all."
She shook her head, cheeks turning a little pink. "Oh, I don't think you need any more blackmail material. Not when there's pictures of me in a pink dress around. Tho' I'm cursing no-one got Mark and Pete on film." She snickered. "Mark definitely got more than he expected with that one."
Angelo blinked. "Oh, now I have to ask for more. Is this still about mistletoe?"
"Not exactly. Mark had this... idea, where he wanted to kiss everyone on Christmas Day. So he goes up to Pete, gives him a little peck on the mouth, no horrible death." Amanda leaned against the door, getting into her story. "Then Pete gives him this look, then just grabs him and plants one right on him. Full on." She began giggling. "It was fucking hysterical, it really was."
Angelo leaned against his own side companionably, laughing. "Yeah, it sounds like it. Don't s'pose there's any CCTV where this happened?"
"No, buggerit. Doug was complaining that we hadn't put in the super security with the cameras and all. But the look on Mark's face... oh, man. I never thought I'd ever see him lost for words..." Amanda was almost giggling too much to hang onto the intercom button.
"Now, there's a memory to hang on to. An' maybe remind him of when he forgets about his Post-it."
"Or to scar the kids for life with. Next time they act up on the bus, I'm giving them the whole horrible story and threatening them with Pete smooches..." Her ribs ached, and she made an effort to stop laughing before she slid down the wall onto the floor. It was cold down there. "So, possibly a bit more exciting than your Christmas, yeah? No truth or dare or random snogging?"
"I spent Christmas with the Pack", he pointed out, amused. "Includin' Domino. Hell yes, there was truth or dare. An' Ian tryin' to get drunk even though he can't, to keep up the image of the scared father-to-be."
"The Pack's getting old, what with all the spawning," Amanda remarked, humorously. "I would have thought they'd have been all respectable and boring, but looks like I was wrong."
"That's what they've got Domino for. She's not tamed yet." He dug a hand in his pocket. "Got somethin' for you, by the way."
"The day Dom settles down is the day the world ends..." Amanda began, and then raised her eyebrows. "For me?" She bit her lip, considering the quarantine. "Open it for me? The decon team's not due for another hour and we can't open the door from this side."
Angelo nodded, fishing out the little package. "Sure thing. An' then we'll see if I'm gonna keep it for you, or what."
"Well, if it's pink, you just might end up keeping it," she teased, watching him with curious impatience. Small package, so it wasn't a CD or a bottle of something... what could it be?
A little jewellery box, as it turned out - bigger than a ring box, but not by very much. He held it up, teasing. "Want to see what's inside?"
Her eyes had widened a bit at the sight of the box. Wait, had she missed something here? Or was she actually still asleep and this one of those highly annoying - albeit, very nice - dreams she'd been having lately. "Um, sure," she said, trying to be nonchalant and not managing it very well. Hopefully he'd think she was just impatient to see her present.
Angelo laughed and let go of the intercom button to open the box.
As he opened it and held it up, she pressed closer to the door, peering through the glass at what was inside. Some sort of pendant on a chain... she couldn't make out what was actually on it, but she felt a bit of a thrill at the sight of it. Definitely something more thought-provoking than a CD. "It looks... nice," she said, cursing at her mental dictionary's sudden failure. "What's on the pendant?"
"It's a medallion of St. Jude", he told her, grinning. "Patron saint of desperate cases, lost causes an' bad situations."
That broke her out of the weird mood. An amused laugh broke from her, and she beamed at him. "One of those perfect presents, hey?" she teased, before sobering a little. The smile didn't leave her face, however. "Thanks, Ange. Really. This is... just wow."
Angelo beamed right back, pleased. "Thought you'd like it. Maybe it'll even be lucky."
"Maybe it will. Can't hurt, that's for sure." She pressed her hand flat against the glass. "Just as well I can't hug you - with all those bruises I might damage something."
"Hey, I'm not that fragile. An' you should've seen me a week ago."
She pulled a face at him. "Considering you look like something the cat dragged in now? Probably just as well I didn't." She grinned. "But expect me to test out how not-fragile you are when I get out of here."
Angelo laughed. "Lookin' forward to it."
