Lil and Wanda

[x-scarletwitch.livejournal.com]

Wanda stops by the mansion to take Lil on a little field trip to meet an old friend.



The growl of the motorcycle cut through the fairly quiet air at the mansion as Wanda drove up the long driveway. She'd emailed Lil and asked her to meet her out front - the other woman didn't know where they were going yet but there was a bit of a time crunch. When she reached the garage area, she slowed down to a stop and made sure it was steady as she braced both legs on the ground. The helmet was off a moment later and curls popped up every which way as she shook out her hair.

"Got a helmet?" she called out to Lil.

"Invulnerability includes having a really hard head," the blonde chuckled. "But the law's the law or so I've been told. Lemme grab one." Lil disappeared back into the garage before returning with the black and shiny safety equipment hanging from her fingers. Dark jeans, boots, leather jacket, she was in her standard get up for an afternoon out to God knows where. "I get any hints where we're going or do I just gotta trust my kidnapper?"

Wanda smirked at the Canadian. "Trust is, thankfully, not as overrated as one might think. Just think of this as a nice ride on a gorgeous spring day. I mean, the worst that could happen is that I end up corrupting you horribly but somehow I doubt you would mind all that much."

"I don't know about that. Takes a hell of a lot to corrupt me," Lil snorted and after rolling her eyes, motioned to the bike. "And you'd better be expecting me to ride with you 'cause Logan's got his out and I ain't signed up for any of the communal cars." And after what had happened with Cammie, attempting to hotwire Scott's car didn't seem like the brightest idea, either.

"This baby is big enough for two," Wanda laughed, patting the space behind her. "Though you might want to pay attention to where we are going - you will probably need to go back when I am not around. And that, my friend, is the only clue you will receive until we're there."

It didn't take much to put the helmet back on and then get the motorcycle primed and ready, just waiting for Lil to hop on.

Lil quirked a brow then with a smirk, settled the helmet into place and hopped on the back of Wanda's bike, giving the other woman's hips a squeeze to signal she was ready.

Laughing under her breath, Wanda nudged the bike into movement; a lazy half circle to get them in the right direction and then she gunned it, sending it into a controlled shot back down the drive and towards the street.

~~

It wasn't quite an hours drive to get to where they were going; outside of the city proper, Wanda turned them to a section that went from urban to something a little leaner than that. It wasn't run down, simply well used and she aimed them towards a patch that sat back away from the road a bit.

It looked like a junk yard, with pieces of metal and cars scattered around behind fences. But a large building took up most of the land, with garage doors flung open wide. She pulled them to a stop in front of that and turned off the bike, leaning on one leg to tilt it to the side. "We're here," she announced, pulling off the helmet with a sigh.

Lil followed suit and yanking off her helmet, shook out the long, blonde mane before looking around their destination. "'Here' is pretty damn interesting," she laughed, climbing off the bike. Looking from Wanda toward the building, she tried to peek inside the garage but what blocked by the angle. "We stealing parts or something?" There were enough of them scattered around. Good looking ones, too. Shiny, classically cut metal meant to fit the curves of a bike.

Wanda snickered under her breath as she swung off the bike. "He'd never forgive me," she said, tucking the helmet under her arm. One of the bay doors was opened half way and she paused to bang the heel of her hand sharply on the metal. "Henri! I know you heard me pull up, stop playing with your toys and come say hello."

Underneath a car that was parked inside the garage, a figure unfolded themselves out from under it. Unfolded and unfolded because he proved to dwarf Wanda by at least half a foot; despite his height, he looked as if a strong wind would blow him right over. He smoothed down the red cowlicks that made his head look like a nest and grinned, throwing open his arms. "My favorite customer! And you brought a friend!"

"Lil," Wanda said, "meet the genius who's going to give you your very own bike."

The Amazon stared at the small man for a moment before a wide grin spread across her face, making her beam. "Well, if he's giving, I'll definitely take," Lil laughed and extended a hand. "Lillian Crawley-Jeffries," she said by way of introduction. "Lil, more commonly. Heard you do one hell of a custom job for us Redwood types."

"Well, not entirely free," Henri laughed, not even blinking at the size of Lil, "but Wanda gets a hefty discount. As do any of the friends she brings to my shop. You won't find any better custom job in the area and not at the price I can quote you." He turned so he could embrace Wanda. "Come in, come in ... mmm, I see I shall need to make this one a frame that will hold."

He muttered under his breath as he led the way in and Wanda tilted her head towards Lil. "His sister was a good friend of mine from college," she explained. "A few years ago, she and her husband had great financial difficulties. Through my contacts with the college, I helped them out and Henri has been forever grateful."

Lil nodded her understanding and gratitude to Wanda, even going so far as to squeeze the brunette's hand as she followed the mechanic; glowing like a child on Christmas morning. Friendships were important and the Canadian was pleased she was forming some in New York if the outing meant anything. "Don't need anything too fancy but definitely built to last," she said, taking in anything and everything she could of the shop. "Definitely gotta be a Harley, though."

"Of course it does," Henri nodded, flopping down on the chair behind a desk that was overflowing with parts, papers and various objects of his trade. He yanked out a pad of paper and started sketching. "With something like this, the frame is going to be the most important thing - you might not have noticed but you're a bit bigger than my normal customer."

Wanda snorted as she eye balled the two guest chairs - neither of them looked safe. And she thought she was bad with the clutter. Instead, she leaned against a filing cabinet. "I think she might have noticed, Henri," she commented. "Keep in mind Lil's like me, so some of the modifications you put on my bike would translate nicely onto hers."

He sighed. "Extra durability, then, I suppose. My poor babies..."