Julian & Crystal: Random Encounter, Influence Gained (BACKDATED)

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Julian nearly collides with Crystal in the hallway and an interesting conversation follows.

OOC: Backdated, due to spontaneity on the night of and a new direction in the log...see if you can spot the turning point.


Flummoxed. That was the only word Julian Keller could think of to describe his current state. It wasn't just that his new electro-powers were at low levels, but also that his mentor was half-lucid, convalescing in the medlab. Because of this he was deep in thoughts as he, hand freshly bandaged, slowly trod the now familiar path back to his room; absent to the person he was about to run into.

Just two weeks earlier, Crystal could have used her powers to avoid a collision, quickly moving one way or the other in the air. This week, however, she did not have that option. Still, she was looking ahead and watching where she was going, even if the boy about to crash into her didn't seem to be paying any attention to his path or who or what might be ahead of him. "Hello, Julian," she greeted him.

Startled by the sudden salutation, Julian jumped back a bit and fell onto the plush carpet. Looking up at Crystal he shook off his daze and tried to push himself up with his powers- only to find himself singeing the rug. Embarrassed, he slowly picked himself up, "Oh, hello, Crystal. Sorry, I...yeah, how've you been?" He was slightly uncomfortable interacting with anyone still, since he was sparking a little from the exposed skin around his neck.

Crystal noted the obviously unintended use of powers which were not Julian's own but didn't say anything about that. "I have been doing well, I believe, even though I have been unable to fly for over a week and I cannot feel the air around me as I am used to being able to do."

"Well, I can't fly normally and I blew up my computer with these," he snapped and sent some sparks dancing around his hand before disappearing. "Frankly I can't wait to get things back to normal," a thought struck him, though he thought it might be rude to ask. "You have Amara's powers...have you spoken to her lately?"

"Have I spoken with Amara lately as in the past day or have I spoken with her since I gained her powers?" Crystal asked, hoping that something bad had not happened to Amara. "We have met and discussed our powers more than once since last Sunday, but I have not had contact with her today."

"I was just wondering if she'd been having any...um...never mind, I should ask her myself." Julian shifted slightly, not wanting to share with anyone else that he was the cause of the occasional poltergeist activity around the mansion. "Anyway, who got your powers?"

"Laurie has my abilities," Crystal told Julian. "Ah, Amara has your powers, that is why you asked me about her, yes? Have you spoken with her since the Sunday before last? I am sure that she will not have any problem meeting with you and discussing any of your concerns. It is not easy to have someone else's abilities and know that someone else is in control of yours, I know."

"No kidding," Julian sighed. "And yeah, I she stopped by for some advice on control but I sent her to..." he smiled slightly. "Hey, I don't suppose you know what happened to Nathan?"

Crystal shook her head. "No, I am not one of the X-Men, and I have not yet returned to working in the medlab. I did contact Jean about volunteering again just an hour ago, but I have not resumed my duties as of yet. I do not know anything more than you know, and I believe that you actually know more than I do in regards to Nathan. Out of curiousity, if you do not mind being asked, who did tell Amara to go see?"

"That's why I asked about Nathan actually; that's who I sent her to." Julian shifted uneasily, not sure what to share about what he'd seen. "I hope she got to him before...well, whatever happened at least." With an utterly fake smile he continued, "You'll be working in the medlab? I'll probably be seeing more of you then," he held up his bandaged hand.

"If your current frequent visits to the medlab are due to your temporary powers, I do not believe that this will be the case," Crystal said, not sure why Julian felt the need to fake-smile at her. She'd spent enough time at parties, meetings, and other events, both seeing fake smiles and giving her own, to be fooled for even one instant by the completely false smile the boy was flashing at her. Had she somehow done something to make him uneasy? "Jean has stated that she believes what happened to us will not continue for much longer. I look forward to having my powers return to me, and I am sure that you feel the same way."

"I do, but," he paused, looking a little ashamed for admitting what he was about to. "I know some of the people who had their powers switch actually prefer it that way. I dunno, I feel a little guilty for sending this back if it's that hard to live with." He shrugged, "And the hand is actually only partly related to the brand-new-eel-me. I blew up my laptop and burned my hand pretty bad."

"I doubt that Jean-Phillipe finds his powers as difficult to deal with as you do," Crystal said. "He has already had them for at least a few years and has had time to learn about them and work on controlling them. It is the same with you and your abilities; I am not sure how long you have had them, but however long it has been, you already had at idea of what you could do and have been using them. Even if you were not able to control them completely and had not yet realized your full potential, you at least had a knowledge of potential problems and were, I assume, working to learn how to solve them. All active powers take time to learn, Julian, no matter what they are."

"I suppose you're right," he said with a more sincere smile. Looking down the hallway, Julian suddenly found himself very tired. "Well, I think I'm going to go read and fall asleep, but I'll see you the next time I need to get my bandages changed, alright?"

Crystal nodded. "Yes, I will see you then, good night. Wait, Julian..." She paused for a moment, deciding whether she should say what she had been thinking or not. "The false, forced smile you attempted to pull on me a few minutes ago... it is not going to work on a lot of people. Maybe some people will be fooled, but it is not very convincing. Trust me, I know about this. I have attended many social functions with other members of royalty as well as dignitaries, politicians, people with power and wealth. If you intend to be more than a passer-by to this sort of life, you will need to work on that smile. At the very least."

Stunned, Julian stopped in mid-step, not having expected such straight forwardness from the princess. "Fake? Um..." she'd seen through it, something no one else had since his arrival. "Yeah, I'll do that, thanks." Turning, he kicked himself for not remembering the fact that she was in fact royalty.

"I can help you if you wish," Crystal informed his back. Julian seemed surprised to be 'caught.' Was he really so used to having people fall for his smile and words? "I did not say this to be rude, but to make a suggestion. I have had extensive experience in this area. Part and parcel of being born into royalty, of growing up in a palace."

Julian turned back around and walked the few paces that he'd managed to put between them at a brisk pace. "Look, I know my family is new money and whatever, but I do know what it's like to be royalty. My father groomed me from birth to take over for him at Keller Industries. We might not have lived in a palace, but it was damn close. Then I become a mutant or whatever and all of a sudden, I'm out. I get to be Hamlet, shipped off to England, except for the whole execution thing." He paused, realizing he hadn't talked to anyone about this since his arrival. "They sent me off to public school; I didn't get a lot of resistance there- so yeah, if you've got advice I'll hear it."

"I am sorry to hear this," Crystal told Julian. "There is nothing wrong with being a mutant, and it is your father's loss if he has spent much effort on you yet fails to appreciate who and what you are. There is no reason for similar grooming to stop, whether it is still to run Keller Industries one day or for whatever else you choose to do in your life. It would be a shame to let such potential go to waste, yes?"

With an uncomfortable moment of silence, Julian felt a small bit of remorse for having gotten a little hot under the collar. "Yes, I guess so," he half sighed, half spoke. "Other side of that though is that I have no clue who I'm going to do with my life. I can't even compete in sports anymore."

"You do not have to know what you will do with your life right now," Crystal said. "Obviously, you had a plan for a certain direction in your life and, at the moment, that direction has taken an unexpected turn. Future plans are never set in stone and can be altered whether or not we intend for them to change. It is a different path you find yourself on now Julian, not a roadblock. What might not be an option for you today, such as sports, does not have to be ruled out entirely. Your future is open to many possibilities, even if they are not known to you now."

With a sly snort Julian gave her a sly, though genuine, smile, "I didn't know Amara's powers included precognition." He pulled his blankets tighter around him, a small spark falling to the carpet and glowing for a moment before extinguishing itself. "I'm up for it, but...not tonight? I mean, it's getting sort of late and..." he let the sentence hang there, giving a slight shrug.

Crystal returned the smile, also a genuine one. "I will see you in the medlab another day. Good night."