xp_logs | Callie and Victor

Callie rescues Vic from his lost wanderings, and the pair find they share a common interest.

The facts that her class was over and soon she would be leaving on vacation with her dad left Callie feeling very happy. And such happiness was the type that could not fully be contained and must be expressed by near skipping down the hallways, movie in hand, eager to find Fred and make him watch it. That is of course until she came across a very lost looking green boy in her field of vision.

She stopped. They didn't have anyone green that she could think of. So with these two observations, Callie formulated the hypothesis that he was new. She started up a quick jog until she found herself falling in step with this new shiny green male. "Hey," she said cheerfully. "What's up? You seem lost, want some help?"

Vic smiled sheepishly at her, scratching at the back of his head. He hadn't been looking for anything in particular, just wandering around, and had managed to find the kitchen, the rec room and the back porch. Which had been pretty easy considering they were right next to each other. He'd also managed to get turned around enough that he wasn't sure which way his and Johnny's suite was from here. "Sure. I'm, um, looking for my room." He shrugged helplessly. "I'm Vic, by the way."

"Callie," a pink hand extended as per the proper protocol for a first meeting, "Pleased to meet you." She looked around the corridor for a few moments trying to figure out which way to take him, when it dawned on her: she didn't know where his room was either. At least without some further information.

"Do you know which suite you're in? Like who else is in there with you?"

He really had to figure a polite way to get out of shaking hands. "Sorry about the sticky," he said as their hands pulled apart. "I can't really help it."

At her next question, he frowned. "Well, Johnny's my roommate, but he just moved in too. And we're the only ones in our suite for right now. Does that help?"

"No need apologize," Callie informed him as she wiped her hand on her jeans. She could always change them, she mused, before returning her attention to the predicament at hand. "You and Johnny?" He was with Nick she thought. "Well I might not be able to find your specific room, but I can take you to where the dorms are and hopefully everything will look a little more familiar. How's that sound?"

"Sounds good," he said gratefully, falling into step next to her. "I can find it once I get to the right hallway, I think." He stuck his hands in his pockets as they walked, self-conscious about the sticky. "So...Where are you from?"

"Originally? I'm from Vermont, so not really far away," she gabbed as she led them through the hallway toward the dorms. "Only now if I go 'home' it means I'm going to Milan. It's a little confusing, I know." She gave him a cheerful smile before asking, "where are you from?"

"Fairbury, Illinois," he responded with a bit of a drawl. "It's a couple hours from Chicago." He hesitated, not quite sure how to ask about her powers. "How long have you been here?" he asked instead.

"It was a year in June," she replied. Wow. Had she really been there a year? Man it didn't feel that long. "Don't worry. It took me almost a month to figure out how to get around, and much of that was using and memorizing the map. Somehow though I still seem to take a wrong turn every so often and end up where I don't want to be."

"I'm surprised I haven't come across more breadcrumb trails," Vic joked. "This is a really nice place, though." They were quiet for a moment as he tried to figure out how to ask what he really wanted to know. Finally, he remembered Mr. Beaubier's statement that most people were okay with just being asked, and screwed up his courage. "So...What's your...How does your mutation work?"

Callie did a quick mental check as they rounded a corner to make sure that they were going the right way. Yup. They were. Her map skills weren't failing her. Which was good. Didn't want to get the new kid lost when you said you'd help him, right? After establishing that this was not the case, Callie turned her attention to answering Vic's question. "Well apart from looking like an elf I'm a chlorokinetic. It means I can control plants with my mind and talk to them. Which most people think is either really cool or really weird or both." People, it seemed, were more readily able to understand how a telepath could communicate using their mind with another person, but tell them you talked to plants and most were sure you were pulling their leg. "And no, the plant doesn't talk to me like the one in Little Shop of Horrors. It's... a little hard to explain."

"So do you do anything else other than being green and pointy and sticky?"

"I think it's pretty cool," he said with a smile. "And no, green and pointy and sticky is pretty much it. Although I have a really long tongue--that probably counts for something."

"Does it take you less time to get to the center of the tootsie roll pop," she joked. "So were you born green or did that come later?"

He laughed. "Nope, three licks, just like everyone else. And yeah, I came out of the oven this way. Green and pointy and sticky." He glanced at her curiously. "How about you? Have you always been pink,
or was that an aftermarket upgrade?"

"Same here," she stated with a nod. "Pink with pointy ears," she pushed back a strand of hair to reveal one, "straight from the manufacturer. With a lifetime warranty. The whole talks with plants things came later though."

They should be there soon, Callie thought as they made their way around another corner. "So how does one find oneself moving from Illinois to Westchester, New York?"

He frowned, jamming his hands deeper into his pockets. There weren't many questions that Victor wasn't quite sure how to answer, but this was one of them. "Long story short, it's safer here," he said finally.
"My hometown is great, but there've been some...issues with anti-mutant groups in the area. So my parents and I thought it might be better for me, and for them, if I were here."

Callie nodded. She had heard that sort of story before and wouldn't push it. "Well Xavier's is pretty cool for being a mutant, obviously. I mean there are some anti-mutant groups here too, but I haven't had
any trouble with them. So it's generally pretty awesome," she explained. "Any of this starting to look familiar at all?"

Vic glanced around, surprised to realize that they'd arrived at the students' wing while he wasn't paying attention. "Yeah, that's mine. Well, ours. Mine and Johnny's." He stopped and turned towards the girl. "Thanks for rescuing me," he said with a smile.

"No problem. I totally know what it was like to be lost here," she said leaning against a wall. "And you'll get it soon, I promise. But if you ever get lost there's like a ton of people here who'll help. Pretty much everyone is really nice and helpful. You'll be fine."

"Cool." He noticed the DVD case in her hand. "What movie is that?"

"This?" Callie held up the case. "It's 'Life is Beautiful.' I was going to try and find someone to bug and watch it with me."

Vic's eyes lit up. "Roberto Benigni, right? I've heard it's really good but I've never gotten to see it."

She beamed, her face glowing with sheer joy. Someone other than she had heard of this movie. This was completely and undeniably awesome. "Yup! It's so good. You wanna join us? If I can convince Fred to watch it. But even if he doesn't we can still have a movie night. You and I."

He pretended to pull out a calendar and flip through its pages. "Let me see if my schedule's free...Hmm...Yep. I think I can squeeze it in." He snapped the imaginary book shut and grinned at her, offering his elbow. "Shall we?"

Callie laughed and looped her arm through his. "I think we shall!"