Marie, Angelo and Amanda: Drinks at Finnegan's

[x-traction.livejournal.com]

Backdated to Thursday night. Amanda, Marie and Angelo go out for a beer as promised. The conversation starts off light, but takes a turn for the serious at the mention of Healing. Until the topic of fingernail painting is brought up.

"Here we go," Amanda said, setting a pitcher of beer and three pint glasses on the table where her two friends were sitting. "This round's on me. And probably the next one too, considering you both got the holiday traffic while I was locked up in the brownstone." Taking her seat, she grinned at Marie and Angelo, the hat Marie had given her set at a jaunty angle on her head. "Thanks for that, by the way."

Marie laughed as she filled all three glasses from the pitcher. "Serves me right for giving Logan a shopping list with anything remotely vague on it. Ah almost didn't give it to you when Ah saw what he'd brought back, but then Ah thought...well, especially with the lock down, you could use a good laugh."

"It's a good look for you", Angelo said solemnly, reaching out to tug one of the dangling pompoms. "Wear it to work, get Mark to take pictures."

"After the pink dress? No bloody way." Amanda wrinkled her nose at him, before grabbing her beer glass to hide the slight colouring of her cheeks at his gesture. "And it's a bit silly looking, but it's warm, and I like it. Clarice knitted me one a few years ago, but it got sort of wrecked, what with all the wear and tear." She smiled at Marie. "Thanks. It's the best hat ever."

Holding up her glass, Marie grinned at the pair, glancing from one to the other. "To the hat," she said clinking her glass against her friends' glasses and then taking a long drink. "May it live a long life full of laughter."

"I'll drink to that," Amanda agreed, touching her glass to Marie's and then Angelo's. "That and someone finding another day in the week so I can get everything done this year that needs doing," she added wryly, before turning to Angelo. "So, tell us O Guru of Time Management - how d'you juggle three lives? Or four, in your case."

"With a day planner or three an' a lot of careful balancin'", was the wry answer. "Plus the small army of little girls who seem to've made it their mission in life to feed me."

"It's really rather cute," Marie said, a hint of laughter in her voice. "Ah'm just surprised one of them didn't ask you the ball." She paused, glancing at Amanda and raising an eyebrow while Angelo took a sip of his drink so hopefully wouldn't notice. "There's some bonafide crushing going on there."

"Just as well most of 'em were too young for New Year's at Silver - they would've had their litlte hearts broken watching him and Sarah," Amanda said airily, but all the while willing Marie to get the hint and drop the subject. "And since we're lacking in armies of little girls at Snow Valley, I'll just have to rely on Doug to make sure I remember to eat. When he's not forgetting himself."

"I'll lend you one of mine", Angelo offered semi-seriously. "Bet Sooraya'd be up for addin' both of you to her list. Or Yvette, when she's feelin' ready to leave the house."

"'S a bit much to expect either of 'em to come all the way out to New York to feed me," Amanda pointed out with a grin. "You can just sic your mum onto me instead." She drank down some more beer and then got up. "'Scuse me, gotta go to the ladies. Be back in a tick." And with that she headed towards the bathrooms at the back of the pub.

Marie took another sip of her beer before setting the pint glass down on the table and refilling it. "So what is goin' on with you and Sarah?" she asked Angelo. "Besides the dancing and the sleepovers."

Angelo shrugged, used to having to explain it though nobody had asked in a while. "We're just havin' fun. It's nothin' serious."

"Really?" Marie replied, a rather innocent expression on her face. "Y'all look pretty happy together. Sure it isn't anything more than a bit of fun?"

"We're friends", he said, eyeing her. "Friends that just happen to be single, an' yeah, havin' fun."

"Friends are good and so is fun. Ah think we could all always use some fun to help balance out our lives," Marie said. "When we have time to fit it in, that is," she added with a wink.

"Oh, I find the time", he said easily. "Once in a while. On weekends."

They were interrupted by Amanda's return. "All right, then?" she said, sliding into her seat and reaching for her beer. "So, what else did I miss while I was locked up? Anything exciting going on? Besides Ange here providing Logan with a punching bag." She nudged his shoulder with hers.

Marie blushed at the mention of fight night, quickly taking a sip of her beer while willing the color to subside. "Nope, nothing really. Just the same old stuff. Logan and Ah went skiing for a couple days, but that's about it."

Angelo nudged right back, laughing. "Yeah, it was kind of quiet. Might be goin' to Burma with Domino an' see how much trouble we can make, later this month."

Amanda nearly spit out the mouthful of beer she'd just taken. "Burma? You and Dom? Bloody fucking hell, Ange, when you want to get into trouble, you don't go by halves, do you? Sometimes I think you might as well join up with us and be done with it." Her tone was joking, but there was a slight edge of concern to her voice.

He shot her a slightly confused look at that. "Joke, Amanda. I'm supposed to be keepin' her out of trouble, though that'll be easier said than done so there probably will be some, but... Dom's behavin' herself these days. Mostly. She's not allowed to go to Yemen anymore."

Amanda frowned, torn between pointing out the inherent flaws in that particular logic, and not wanting to cause a fuss. She chose the latter. "So was I, mate. Didn't mean anything by it," she said with a shrug and another drink. "So, Marie... what's on your plate this year?" she asked, obviously switching topics away from the awkward. If Angelo wanted to put himself into danger babysitting Domino, so be it.

"Same old. School, the team, teaching and RA stuff." Setting her glass down, Marie shook her head and let out a small laugh. "Man, that sounds like a whole lot more when Ah list it out all in a row."

"There, see?" Angelo said with a grin. "I'm not the only one balancin' lives."

"I'm still getting over the part where the both of you are teaching," Amanda said, amused and leaping on the easier subject. "Tho' this year's batch of kids must be pretty easy to deal with, compared to us." She chuckled. "Even if they complain they miss out on all the fun of demon attacks."

"Ah dunno...it's hard to compare y'all. They may not have demon attacks, but it hasn't been completely smooth sailing," Marie said, thinking of Marius, Jennie, Crystal and a few others. "But my teaching is pretty easy - it's just P.E. right now. Which is more than just having them run laps, but it doesn't require an immense time commitment outside the classroom."

Angelo nodded. "An' I get to share with Lorna, so it's not as bad as it could be. Plus, yeah, I don't have to do all that much lesson plannin'. Except notes about how each of them's doin'."

Amanda's face clouded a little at the mention of Lorna's name, but she let it go. Whatever was bothering Remy now, it wasn't related to the green-haired woman. To be fair, she'd let him go, finally. "Yay for the lack of paperwork. Sometimes I think my in-tray's gunna eat me," she joked, pouring herself another beer.

"Beware the sentient in-trays," Marie joked, pushing her glass over to be filled and signaling the waitress to bring them another. "Never feed them after midnight or they have little babies and breed paperwork like rabbits."

"Remind me never to try a summoning spell, then," the witch said dryly. "The way the magic works, I might just end up doing that."

"How's it been goin' with the magic, anyway?" Angelo asked lightly. "Found anythin' new?"

There was a long pause, before Amanda said softly: "Yeah, you could say that." Taking a breath - and a long draught of beer - she continued. "Healing."

The wheels in Marie's head starting turning and her eyes widened. "Kurt," she said softly, almost under her breath. "That's...that's big." Looking with concern at the blond witch, she reached out to pat the girl's arm. "You ok?"

Angelo gave her a sideways look in turn - she obviously was physically okay, but that quietness in her voice... he almost regretted bringing it up now.

"Yeah, I Healed Kurt. 'S how I found out... how I do it now." Amanda's eyes were fixed on the table, refusing to meet those of her friends. She'd told the Snow Valley crew because it was an important issue for the team, but even then she'd resorted to the computer. In person... it was harder. "I have to use other people to power it," she said, stating it plainly. "What Selene taught me... it stuck."

"Leave it to Selene to give a gift that keeps on giving," Marie said, the edge in her voice directed at the former Black Queen. "Ah'm just glad Kurt's ok...and Ah didn't hear anything about anyone else bein' hurt, so..."

"I did it right." Amanda left the 'this time' off, but it was clearly implied. "Told Jean as soon as I realised, she arranged things. Got a couple of people to donate, as it were." She wasn't about to say who - that was their perogative. Her hands tightened on her glass. "I would have used just me if I could have, but I mightn't have had enough to do the job."

"An' you'd have used everythin' you had doin' it", Angelo guessed. "Glad it didn't come to that."

"Nothing wrong with using willing donors Amanda," Marie said sternly. "You did a good thing and you should be proud of yourself."

At her friends' words, Amanda raised her eyes from the tabletop, giving them a small, grateful smile. "I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm proud of meself," she said, "But... 'm dealing with it. And Kurt's up and about and able to see and no-one else got hurt doing it, which makes it worth it. So..." she shrugged. "'M trying to see the good."

"You should be", Angelo echoed Marie. "You didn't just take, you asked, an' I'm guessin' you chose volunteers you knew could take it?"

"I didn't choose anyone," she corrected quietly. "Jean did. I didn't even ask - I lost the right to do that last October."

"We all make mistakes," Marie said equally quietly. "Some are bigger, some are smaller - the important part is that we learn from them." She stared silently at her beer for a minute before an almost imperceptible shiver went through her body. "Ok, and if this keeps up we're gonna have to institute Girl's Night rules - emo-muppet takes a shot."

"It's not Girl's Night", Angelo objected. "But those don't sound like bad rules for all that."

"What, you don't want another makeover?" Amanda joked, rallying and shooting a grateful glance at Marie. "So, should I go get a bottle of tequila, then?" She wasn't in any way serious.

"Or we could just talk about happier things." Marie grinned evilly at Angelo. "Like what color your nails would look best in the next time they need painting."

"You're just buyin' yourself trouble, D'Ancato. I'm bidin' my time, you know. Don't think you've got away with the last time."