Vanessa & Garrison | Wednesday evening

[x-copycat.livejournal.com]

Quite belatedly, Garrison makes good on his promise to check in on Vanessa. There's Chinese, zen masters and the amazing occurrence of Vanessa finally turning blue again.

A number of changes had taken place in casa de shapeshifter over the past week. The console for the security system in the kitchen and the new windows were the only obvious new additions, but Vanessa had gone as close to making the place into a fortress as she could without tearing the whole building down and rebuilding it with steel walls or something suitably hard to bash one's way through. Since she'd seen Adrienne she'd had the wall she shared with the stairwell reinforced along with the door. Given some of the people she knew could still melt or bash a hole through it wasn't all that reassuring since it meant other people other there could too, but it was the best she could do. For now she appeared deceptively calm lounging on a couch reading a book, though that zen state had come at the cost of beating one of Ignacio's more durable heavy bags for the better part of three hours.

There was a brisk knock on the door, somewhat muffled by the new measures. Kane juggled the paperbags of food with the DVD box, trying not to let the hot bags press against the plastic case too much.

Why did knocking on the door always came right when she was thoroughly enjoying her book, didn't it? "Remind Jean-Paul he said I wasn't allowed on the infidelity cases," she called as she slid her bookmark in place and set aside the book. A moment later she had sprung over to the door. Three different locks clicked as they were undone and the door opened to Laura's face peering out from the opening. "Oh, not Lucas. I thought you'd said 'a few days,' Monsieur Kane? I was feeling terribly stood up, I'll have you know." Vanessa stepped back, opening the door fully, and gestured Garrison in. "Uh...do you need help with that?"

"I'm good. I would have been here sooner, but I was out in California investigating the death of Captain America. No, I'm not kidding.' Kane said as he juggled the bags into the apartment and placed them on the counter. "How have you been?"

"There's a guy who actually calls himself Captain America? Or was, rather?" She quirked an eyebrow and locked the door behind Garrison. She couldn't remember if he had actually been inside her apartment before but the floor plan was fairly open and he'd find his way to the kitchen on his own just fine. "Someone should really work on his branding or summat. Please tell me he was a wrestler or some such with that name."

"Obviously not a history buff. He was supposed to be the great American weapon against the Nazis. Did USO tours and sold war bonds. Turns out the line the Army used about him being the ultimate soldier was actually true. First one got killed before the end of the war, and his replacement was murdered a week ago. Weird fuckin' world." Kane shook his head, still awash with all the strangeness of his case out in California. "Anyhow, I found season one of Kung-Fu on the corner."

"History buff, yes. Twentieth century though...eh. Too recent to be interesting to dissect, personally. I'm more of a BC to seventeenth-ish century kind of girl." It took a second for Vanessa to catch up with the subject shift when he brought up Kung-Fu. First she thought it had something to do with the apparent super soldier, then thought he was talking about Empire MMA. It was only after the really confused expression had come over her face that she vaguely recalled something about maybe a TV show. "Kung-Fu? Is that...a really old show that takes place in dynastic China?"

"Most of it was actually set in the Old West." He grinned crookedly. "Epic television, really. Plus, the main character is particularly well named, I think. Heroic name, in fact."

Vanessa narrowed borrowed brown eyes in his direction. "Was he named Garrison or Kane?" She passed by him and headed for a cupboard. Maybe this was the night not being able to get drunk easily really became a tragedy. "Do you want actual plates or just silverware? I am not above eating out of cartons, but I am capable of being more civilized if you insist upon it."

"Ooh, you'll see. Kung-Fu is a sorely forgotten jewel of American television. It's no Beachcombers, but it's close." He walked over and tossed the DVD package on the coffee table. "I'm firmly against plates for Chinese. Cartons were good enough for a thousand Hollywood scenes, it should be good enough for us."

"You don't have anything contagious, do you? Like optimism? I'm really firm on paying homage to my Bostonian cynic past here, mountie boy, and I can't have you upsetting the delicate balance I've struck." Vanessa's attempts to not laugh at herself failed remarkable as she pulled out two forks. Chop sticks were more effort than she was willing to put in at the moment. "What's a Beachcomber? Other than one of those crazy people who wanders around trying to find treasure or whatever in the sand?"

"Canadian television of the early 80s. It's hard to explain." He began to unpack the bags, setting out the cartons. When he'd first moved to New York, he'd been perversely happy to discover that the local Chinese places served their food in the tall, white containers he'd always seen on television. It was different from the red and white rectangular boxes and aluminum pie plates that he was used to growing up.

"Plus, it is impossible to be a cynic while eating Chinese food and watching Kung-Fu. Seriously, it's been scientifically proven. So you'll need to take a happy break or something during the show. I promise to tell no one."

"While I normally defend my cynic-hood, I must admit that Chinese food tends to cause endorphins to be released upon consumption. It must be the MSG or summat." She also could have blamed Laura since she was so damn perky all the time but Vanessa wasn't keen to point out her continued twin status if she could help it. "Or maybe it's in the grease they cook in."

Making her way back over to Garrison, Vanessa set the forks down and nabbed the DVD case. "Kung-Fu," she read in her most speculative tone. Then she shrugged, took out the first disc and popped it into the DVD player. "So if I manage to hold onto my cynicism for the next however many hours does that become a failing of the food or the entertainment?" Laura's mouth formed into a smirk as she teased, "Or...would it be the company?"

"I am a cop. We do tend to the cynical side. However, if that's the case at the end of the night, I'll be forced to resort to bad covers of Arrogant Worms songs. If you make it through that, yeah, it's totally on me this time." He agreed affiably, between bites of chicken chow mein.

"Arrogant worms?" That stopped her dead in the middle of reaching for a carton of something meaty, she didn't care what it was since it was food. Vanessa hesitated, grabbed the carton and fell into place beside Garrison on the couch. "What the fuck is an arrogant worm and what would a worm have to be arrogant about?"

"According to their music, Canada being really big. And cows. It's complicated." The grin was back, purposefully being oblique for the reaction.

Vanessa stared at him. She blinked, expression completely vacant. Then she playfully shoved him, albeit it a touch harder than she normally would thanks to forgetting to account for strength Laura had that she didn't. "One day, Mountie Bob, you will stop using the Canadian card to fuck with me. Granted, you will likely be dead or unconscious that day..."

"I'm told that I have a very pleasant and agreable personality when I'm in a coma." He reached for one of the glassine soy sauce packages and dumped it into his carton. "Oops, there we go. See, the hero's name is Caine. It just screams 'noble badass', don't you think?"

Smiling as she pulled a piece of beef off her fork, Vanessa nodded. "Yes, it definitely screams 'pain in the ass.'"

"You know, when I decide to just walk the earth, solving problems with my deep Eastern philosophy and martial arts skills, you'll regret making fun of me." He got up and took another carton out of the bags. Dining with Kane was almost the parody of 'Super Sizing'. The Canadian needed a lot of calories to sustain his frame and powers, and that led to situations like the current 'Dinner for Six' take out for just two people. "At some point, when raiders have taken over your little Mojave town and you need someone to challenge Liberty Valance, I'll remember this. I bet it won't be so funny then..."

He sat back down and tipped his new carton towards her. "Dumpling?"

Giggling despite herself, Vanessa snagged a dumpling and tried to stop laughing. "Aye, aye, when Liberty Valance comes 'round and I am transformed into a plucky but useless damsel I will eat my words, kind sir, and beg you to intercede on behalf of my town." Vanessa nearly choked trying to eat her dumpling because she couldn't help picture Garrison in a gi, katana strung across his back with long hair partially pulled into a bun on the top of his head. It was a very fetching image. Really. "Do you think you'll take payment in shoes? Since you're walking the earth and all."

"Sandals. I'll need those rice sandals. They're more wise, obviously." Kane took a dumpling and flipped it in the air, catching it neatly in his mouth and swallowing it after a couple of bites. "Although, for some reason, I get the feeling you're not taking me seriously here."

She turned wide eyes to Garrison and did that I-don't-know-what-you-mean innocent blinking thing. "What could possibly have given you that idea?"

"The dumplings told me. See?" He held up a dumpling to his ear. "Don't trust her, Garrison! She's the Mother of Lies! Mothers of Lies!" He said in a high pitched, squeaky voice as he trembled the dumpling in the air.

Holding a hand up over her mouth, Vanessa gasped. "Dumpling, why do you tell him these falsehoods?" She sniffled. "I thought we were friends!"

"The dumplings don't lie, Vanessa. You know that." He popped it into his mouth, chewing contentedly. "Plus, they are a lot better tempered than breakfast ceral."

She sniffled again and made a show of wiping at her nose and petulantly taking another bite of her beef and vegetables. After swallowing her eyes slide over toward Garrison again. "I need you to be honest with me here," she began quite seriously and leaned in close to him. Vanessa's voice dropped to a whisper. "How long has your food been talking back to you for?"

"Since last week. I poured some milk on to my breakfast, and I distinctly heard it say 'snap, crackle, fuck him'."

A hand went over her mouth as she giggled. Giggled. What was with the giggling? Vanessa was putting full blame for that on Laura's mimic. Laura was a giggler. Vanessa was not. Or so she would maintain, anyhow. "Well, I have to admit, people the world over are on the 'fuck him' bent. Either they find you dead sexy or really annoying," she joked and leaned away in a vain attempt to avoid a possible elbow or nudge that might push her over.

"I think it's most likely both. I am a man of many dimensions." He glanced over his shoulder, knowing the gesture would draw her eyes as well. As they flickered to follow his, he reached out with the arm that held his food, and tipped her over. "You're not paying much attention to the genius going on the television right now, you know. How else are you going to absorb the same lessons as Grasshopper?"

The fact that Vanessa's guard was down enough for him to pull that off said scores about how relaxed she was feeling with Garrison around. She hadn't relaxed this much with almost anyone else since waking up in the medlab a couple weeks ago. Vanessa stayed flopped over, happily without her carton having up ended. Instead of sitting back up she just swiveled around and appropriated Garrison's lap for her legs to stretch over. "Sorry, I was distracted by the insane 'genius' sitting beside me. If you want me to absorb lessons shouldn't you be keeping your mouth busier with food than talking?" This time she did not win the effort to resist sticking her tongue out at him.

"I was mentoring. Totally different. But, now that you mention it, I am hungry." Kane stretched back to snag the edge of the paper bag with his fingers, and deposited the rest of the Chinese on the floor in front of the couch. "Plus, sticking your tongue out at me doesn't win you arguments. It just makes Laura look 12."

Whilst in the middle of chewing Vanessa settled for a shrug. "Everyone under about twenty-four looks twelve to me anyway. I'm amazed I don't get carded trying to rent R-rated movies, to be honest. Laura's cute, but she's also tiny and child-like. I feel as long as I'm wearing her it's a fairly in character and somewhat appropriate reaction." She grinned and snagged another bite of food off her fork. Her attention turned from Garrison to the television. "So what is going on here?"

"The young orphan Caine befriended is calling him weak for letting two guys search him, and he's explaining that he had nothing to protect, so why fight them about it?" Kane pointed a fork at the television screen. He actually would have been happier with chopsticks; between his mother and his time out in Vancouver, Kane could use them as effortlessly as he could a fork. "And in a minute, he's going to end up working for a widow with a ranch to earn the boy a place to sleep and some food."

"Were you paying attention the whole time or do you have this memorized?" She suspected the latter, and maybe even hoped for it just because it was the more amusing of the two choices. Vanessa squinted at the television, unsure how interesting this show was going to be. If all else failed maybe she could get her few hours sleep for the night. Then again, that could result in incessant poking courtesy of the pain in the ass Canadian so maybe not such a great idea.

"I can multi-task with the best of them, baby." Garrison closed the empty dumpling box and went fishing for the General Tao's Chicken he'd ordered. "Also, Logan and I might have watched the first season a couple of times already while drinking. Maybe."

"And by 'maybe' you mean 'definitely' and possibly also when you were more sober than you're letting on." She nudged him a little with her leg after he was done fishing for another carton. Which reminded her...somehow she had gotten to the end of hers. Vanessa actually pouted at the empty carton. Laura's metabolism was dreadfully inconvenient. "Are there any noodle type things?" she asked, craning her neck but not actually moving to sort through the boxes.

"Ho fan and Singapore." Kane passed her another carton, guessing which one it was before opening up his own. "This is a forgotten classic, I say. It used to come on in the morning after Magnum PI and before the Rockford Files during summer vacation. That's nothing to laugh at there."

"You realize people usually 'forget' classics for a reason, aye?" Vanessa set her empty carton on the floor near her and popped open the new one. She assumed these were Singapore since she didn't recognize them on sight. Hey, food was food and she was starving. She also generally trusted Garrison to not have completely awful taste in food, which was possibly something of a blind faith. The first bite was cautious and while there was a bit of a bite they were good. "If you ever decide to go for the big, bar mustache thing like Magnum PI I am disowning you. Just so you know."

"Tempting. But only Selleck can rock the Magnum 'stache. I'm good with my existing facial hair, thanks. Now shush. Watch when East meets West, eh?"

* * * * * * *

The sleep deprived state Vanessa had been living in for the past two weeks had clearly worn on the metamorph. She had made it only a few full episodes before she had started to go in and out of a light sleep. By the end of the fourth episode she was completely out. Garrison had joined the party, dozing himself by the sixth or seventh episode.

It was some time near the end credits of an episode that Laura's mimic inexplicably began to drop. Vanessa's legs grew longer, sliding her kness across her friend's lap, as she gained four inches and shifted back to her own height. At the same time her bones and musculature changed in a grotesque sort of morph much slower than the rapid flow Vanessa's shifting typically underwent. All the while her skin turned more and more blue while brown leeched out of her hair as if someone was draining the color away.

Kane suddenly jerked awake, reacting when her legs shifted against his thighs. Kane was naturally a light sleeper, and the sudden shift woke him. He looked around muzzly for a moment, and paused as he caught sight of Vanessa, now finishing the last stages of her morphing.

The sudden jerking beneath her roused Vanessa back to consciousness as well. When nothing seemed to be amiss, though, she simply shifted and began to drift off again. Assuming it was the shifting, she tugged at her shirt in an effort to de-kink it. It felt strangely tight, like it had shrunk several sizes all at once.

He was going to say something, but instead watched the transformation from Laura's form to the Vanessa he knew. With a satisfied smile, he simply patted her shin and turned back to the television, letting her sleep peacefully in her own body for the first time since being rescued.

Nearly a half hour went by with Vanessa trying to tug her shirt down to cover the inches of exposed skin that were irritatingly cold. At some point her foot came up to rub against the opposite ankle for the exact same reason. The annoyance with how cold bits of her were only brought her closer to consciousness, which meant she was also increasingly aware that her pants felt just this side of too tight. Finally, she was annoyed into waking up.

With a whine, Vanessa shifted onto her back and cracked her eyes open. She glanced over toward the television to find it still on and then back at the Canadian under her legs. She bent at waist, wiggling a bit from side to side. "What is it about passing out on a couch that always gets you all twisted up in your clothes?" Vanessa complained as she arched her lower back off the cushion and tried again to pull her shirt down.

"I think it's one of those moral lessons - that laziness has it's own price or something like that." Kane said mildly, split between watching the show and watching Vanessa squirm as she tried to get comfortable. Her natural form was taller than Laura, leaving her trapped in clothes that were easily too small. He wondered just how long it would take her to notice.

"Why am I not allowed to be lazy?" she complained. "Maybe it's my karmic retribution for not properly appreciating the philosophical ways of a white guy trying to be an Asian zen ninja master or what have you." She finally sat up in an effort to get her clothes straightened out - so she could fall asleep on Garrison again, of course - when she spotted her foot dangling off the other side of her friend. Eyes going wide, she actually pulled her foot over to stare at it, which only led to her staring at her hands.

"I'm blue?" Vanessa looked up at Garrison and backhanded his arm lightly. "When the hell did I turn blue again?" Her tone was mostly shock. Whether she was happy about this development or not was undecided if her tone and wide-eyed expression were any indication.

"Sometime while you were sleeping. I was dozing a bit and woke up when you suddenly added, like, three inches of leg." Kane said, bemused at her reaction.

She hit him again, a bit harder this time but not nearly hard enough to actually hurt a normal person never mind Garrison. "And you didn't tell me? You didn't think 'hey, that's weird, she doesn't usually do her icicle impersonation while she's asleep maybe I should poke her'?" She finally got up on her feet and actually pulled her too small shirt up her stomach as if to see that the blue kept going up. "I need clothes that fit, hang on." With that she turned to head off to her bedroom, where she could freak out a little behind a closed door, try to figure out what the fuck happened and whether or not she should explain to Garrison why she was reacting like this. And also to strip off Laura-sized clothing in favor of something that actually fit her.

"Hey, for all I know, you shapeshift regularly when you sleep. It's not like there's been video posted to check it against." He stayed relaxing in the couch. Her reaction wasn't exactly what he expected, but he knew Vanessa; she'd either tell him when she was ready or not at all. Trying to wheedle an answer out of her would be all but impossible.

The door to her bedroom was left cracked open so she could hear him and talk back without having to raise her voice too much. "If that wasn't your secret camera I found pointed at my bed then whose was it?" She had literally stripped down and was inspecting herself in the mirror, unable to quite believe she'd somehow managed to unstick herself.

"Like there's any lack of suspects for that one, eh?" Kane prodded around the bag of Chinese food, looking for anything he missed. Sadly, it was down to a pair of fortune cookies.

"I hadn't thought there was such a list of suspects, but apparently I'm going to need to reevaluate the situation." Vanessa finally came out of her room in a pair of short running shorts and a tank top. She had blankets and a heater so who needed pants and long sleeves? She wanted to actually marvel at the fact that she was back in her own body finally. Especially since she'd never missed her own form nearly so much.

As she approached the couch she came up behind Garrison and leaned over his shoulder. "Oh, I nearly forgot with all the food and Eastern philosophy," she began before kissing his cheek. "Thanks for drifting into morally grey territory and figuring out where people needed to look for me." Vanessa smiled, then walked around to deposit herself back onto her spot on the couch.

"Was there ever a doubt? Although, we shouldn't make a habit of it. Her Green Bitchiness at work nearly caught my stretching of departmental authority this time. There's nothing Brand would like more than to have my balls firmly in her grip over something related to any of Xavier's people." Kane said with a scowl.

"There was occasionally doubt, but it wasn't specific to you." That was very possibly the most Vanessa had said on the topic of her captivity. Luckily Garrison had provided a very convenient segue. "Who is Brand? Let's pretend I was living in a petri dish for months, okay?"

"SHIELD thinks the FBI - specifically Duncan's division - is a little too chummy with the X-Men, and has seconded Agent Abigail Brand over on a deal similar to my deal with the RCMP. So I need to keep any involvement with the X-Men in cases as quiet and deniable as possible. She's very ambitious and twice as ruthless when she sees a way to get ahead." Garrison paused and chewed on his thumbnail for a moment. "And, unfortunately, she's smart. I make a wrong step, and she can cut the mansion off from the Bureau for good."

"I'm guessing conveniently 'erasing' her from the situation isn't where you're at yet?" She frowned a little. "That's too bad, I do have pertinent job experience in that area. Alas, if we're not scheming to at least make her a vegetable in the hospital then I guess I'm no use on that one unless X-Factor can be of use to do things behind her back that aren't X-men related to help you and annoy her." Vanessa was all about annoying people who irritated her friends. It was a loyalty thing. "Otherwise, you know where I live and I can start keeping Moosehead in the fridge." She grinned. "For de-Branding after work as necessary, of course."

"I don't think we're at the point that we need to compromise her. It would be an easy option, but she hasn't broken the law, and ambition and being a bitch sadly aren't actionable offenses yet. I just have to be careful and keep my nose clean, like a good little Agent." He tossed the other fortune cookie over to her and opned up the plastic wrap around his. "But I'll keep the refuge idea in mind. If only to avoid muddying up my record by pitching her off the roof of the Field Office or something."

Vanessa caught the fortune cookie and grinned. "Aww, a good little agent, how cute." She actually reached over and patted Garrison on the head. "You shouldn't pitch her off the roof though, love. That ties you to the crime far too much. You should get someone else to pitch her off the roof for you. Too bad you don't know a shapeshifter who could do that for you without getting it traced back to them." Vanessa smirked and cracked open her cookie. "You are open and honest in your philosophy of love," she read. "What does that even mean?"

"I don't know. I always do the 'in bed' thing to make them make sense." He cracked open the cookie and pulled out the curl of paper. "See? People find you interesting and engaging... in bed. Perfectly accurate Chinese wisdom, right there." He flipped the cookie up into the air and caught it in his mouth.

"Do you upgrade that much when you're in bed? On the couch I find you smug and a little annoying," Vanessa teased and crunched into her cookie.

"Some people consider that my best side."

"Some people also have questionable judgment," she pointed out with a smile. A quick glance toward the windows in the kitchen, then the door was followed by Vanessa resuming her previous position laying down with her legs stretched across Garrison's lap. "Now, shh, I'm learning the art of zen philosophy here!"