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Entry tags:
Sins of the Father || Another One Down
Topaz goes to the med lab after hearing about Amanda. There’s no such thing as good news.
Wanda's text had sent Topaz into a near panic, although she was good at hiding it. She muttered something about going to make some tea and left the rest of the magic team behind, hurrying up the library stairs. She didn't remember much of run back to the mansion, except for cursing how far away it seemed. She didn't remember getting inside, or running down to the sub-basement which housed the med lab. She didn't think at all until she stopped in the hall, frozen. What the hell? she cursed herself, looking around. She could hear people talking and people screaming through closed doors, and the amount of fear that radiated in the air was almost suffocating. What was she doing here? What had she been hoping to accomplish?
The door opened, and Jean stepped out into the hallway. Her normally put-together look was mostly rumpled, with her frazzled red hair and dark circles under her eyes. She was just glad to be wearing clothing that didn't have blood on it.
"Topaz, I'm sorry but we're a little busy at the moment. How can I help you?" she said, having sensed the blind panic coming from the girl as she ran down the hall.
At least she wasn't another victim.
"I uh..." Christ. She swallowed dryly, finally managing to say, in a small voice, "Amanda?" How was she, was she okay, was she going to live, what was wrong with her, was it a curse, all things Topaz wanted to say, but couldn't find the words.
Jean was silent a moment. The screaming behind the doors hadn't stopped, and Jean knew it wasn't going to stop any time soon. For a girl who was upset over her friends and mentor, anything Jean said wouldn't be very reassuring with all the chaos in the background.
"Excuse me, I need to tell the others I'll be away for a moment. I'll be right back," she said, stepping back inside the doors.
Topaz didn't realize she was shaking until she backed up against the wall and leaned against it. Three, four friends in the med lab, and now Amanda. Even if they found a countercurse, what good would it be without her helping? Topaz dug the heels of her palms into her eyes before going for her phone - and pausing. Who was she going to call? Kurt would be the first choice, but he'd probably already seen the journals. And she didn't want to bother him when his sister was hurt.
In the end she let her hand fall back to her side, empty.
About 30 seconds later, Jean came back out. "Come with me," she said gently, putting her hand on her shoulder as she nodded further down the hall.
As they walked, Jean pulled her hair out of her ponytail, taking the time to smooth it and pull it back up. She headed for the War Room, sliding her key card to open the door, and motioned for Topaz to step inside. It was a quiet of place as any, and they had a coffee maker.
"Amanda's....lost a lot of blood. It's bad. Really bad," Jean said quietly.
Topaz used the walk to compose herself. Amanda was down. She was..... technically.... Amanda's apprentice, in the broadest sense of the term. Or at least, she had never officially quit as Amanda’s assistant. She had to take charge. Once in the War Room she took a deep breath, and was happy her voice didn't shake when asked, "What happened? She said she was going to London to follow up with a contact."
Jean went to the coffeemaker and turned it on, waiting for the water to boil. It was a Keurig, so there wasn't much to wait on versus a full pot.
She took a seat against the table, hesitant to go into detail given how close the girl--woman--was to Amanda, but if it was something that had to do with what was going on, perhaps it could help.
"Someone attacked her. We found at least a dozen puncture wounds. It caused massive blood loss. I haven't seen anything like it. She somehow appeared in a treehouse on the mansion grounds. Maya found her," she said.
The light on the Keurig turned blue, and Jean popped a k-cup into holder, letting a mug fill up. She rubbed her forehead.
"She's...We are doing what we can."
Topaz had a good poker face. She always had. She processed the information without flinching, without giving any suggestion of what might have been going on her head. "She appeared in the treehouse?" Was the detail she locked, shutting down her mind at the same time. Being tired always made people project more, whether they knew it or not, and emotions were currently rolling off Jean in waves. She needed to focus. "Like, she teleported? That's..." Impossible. There was no way Amanda could have skipped over NYC and come straight to Westchester. Topaz knew how Amanda's magic worked.
If she had somehow forced herself to come straight to the mansion, then she had been running away from something bad.
The witch leaned back against the wall, running her hands through her hair and blowing out a long breath. "No idea what caused the wounds, I suppose?" She was trying to stay calm. Anyone who knew her would be able to call her on it in a heartbeat. She needed to not be called on it right now.
Jean took a sip of her coffee,sitting against the table. She knew it'd take awhile for the caffeine to kick in and the veil to lift, especially since she'd had too many cups already. She knew if she sat down she wouldn't be able to get back up enough quick enough in case someone started to code. They were barely managing to keep them alive as it is
"Not really. It was smaller than a knife, bigger than a needle. Enough to spill a lot of blood. Between her and Molly we've had to make a number of runs to the blood bank and may start needing volunteers to donate," she said, shaking her head. She didn't know what to do, especially in the face of magic, and it frustrated the hell out of her.
Topaz scrubbed her eyes, pulling out her phone to send a quick text to Clea with the information about Amanda. They'd need it for their research. "Great, okay. Magic probably. Who's strong enough to take down Amanda in her own city?"
There was a flash red, and Topaz turned just in time to see the bolt spear Amanda, flinging her into the air before impaling on the ground, Amanda still on it...
Topaz' couldn't stop her expression from darkening. It had seemed ridiculous when Amanda had suggested Adam Destine. What did he care about her? Sure, he wanted her dead, but not nearly as much as he wanted Taboo. And why attack other people from the mansion and put them more on guard? That would just make it harder. He had taken out Amanda in London, though. There had to be a line connecting these lines. Topaz just couldn't follow it.
Jean studied Topaz, who's attention suddenly seemed very far away.
"It looks like you might know who."
Topaz pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes and blowing out a long breath. "That nutter.... back in February. Not my father, the other one. But it doesn't make any sense. None of this fits them -- okay attacking Amanda might, but I'm the one they hate." She shook her head and crossed her arms, sighing again. "Guess we wait for Amanda to wake up and tell us." Because she would wake up. If it came down to it, Topaz would sell her soul to either side of the Way to make it happen. The mansion needed Amanda.
Setting her cup down, Jean was silent for a few moments. "Perhaps....they did it because they knew it would hurt you?" she said.
"The body heals. The heart....can sometimes take longer."
"Yeah well they don't me very well, do they?" Topaz pushed herself off the wall. "And clearly they know even less about the mansion. I don't care how powerful you are, when fifty-some-odd mutants come down on your head, you're fucked. S'why it doesn't make sense. There are three of them. It's not a fight they would win."
Jean took a sip of coffee. "I wouldn't rule anything out until you've won," she said gently, rubbing her face.
"Underestimating someone can be dangerous."
She let out a breath. "Still, you're right. We'll get through this," she said.
"I'm not letting anyone die on my watch."
"Yeah," Topaz said quietly. "Same."
Her phone buzzed and she reached for it without thinking, assuming it was one of the magic people wanting an update.
Her expression didn't twitch even the slightest when she saw Amanda's name attached to the message preview.
"I should get back," she said. "If anything changes with anyone, make sure you text all of us - Clea, Stephen, etc. One of us will be looking at our phones, hopefully."
Jean finished off her cup with one last gulp. The hotness of the brew didn't even seem to bother her at this point. It wasn't the best coffee, but it was damn good at the moment,
"I will," she said.
Topaz looked at her phone again, then back st Jean. The smile she gave Jean was sad, and she did nothing to hide it. “Thanks Doc,” she said quietly before slipping out and running down the hall, the screams of the victims crashing in both sides.
Wanda's text had sent Topaz into a near panic, although she was good at hiding it. She muttered something about going to make some tea and left the rest of the magic team behind, hurrying up the library stairs. She didn't remember much of run back to the mansion, except for cursing how far away it seemed. She didn't remember getting inside, or running down to the sub-basement which housed the med lab. She didn't think at all until she stopped in the hall, frozen. What the hell? she cursed herself, looking around. She could hear people talking and people screaming through closed doors, and the amount of fear that radiated in the air was almost suffocating. What was she doing here? What had she been hoping to accomplish?
The door opened, and Jean stepped out into the hallway. Her normally put-together look was mostly rumpled, with her frazzled red hair and dark circles under her eyes. She was just glad to be wearing clothing that didn't have blood on it.
"Topaz, I'm sorry but we're a little busy at the moment. How can I help you?" she said, having sensed the blind panic coming from the girl as she ran down the hall.
At least she wasn't another victim.
"I uh..." Christ. She swallowed dryly, finally managing to say, in a small voice, "Amanda?" How was she, was she okay, was she going to live, what was wrong with her, was it a curse, all things Topaz wanted to say, but couldn't find the words.
Jean was silent a moment. The screaming behind the doors hadn't stopped, and Jean knew it wasn't going to stop any time soon. For a girl who was upset over her friends and mentor, anything Jean said wouldn't be very reassuring with all the chaos in the background.
"Excuse me, I need to tell the others I'll be away for a moment. I'll be right back," she said, stepping back inside the doors.
Topaz didn't realize she was shaking until she backed up against the wall and leaned against it. Three, four friends in the med lab, and now Amanda. Even if they found a countercurse, what good would it be without her helping? Topaz dug the heels of her palms into her eyes before going for her phone - and pausing. Who was she going to call? Kurt would be the first choice, but he'd probably already seen the journals. And she didn't want to bother him when his sister was hurt.
In the end she let her hand fall back to her side, empty.
About 30 seconds later, Jean came back out. "Come with me," she said gently, putting her hand on her shoulder as she nodded further down the hall.
As they walked, Jean pulled her hair out of her ponytail, taking the time to smooth it and pull it back up. She headed for the War Room, sliding her key card to open the door, and motioned for Topaz to step inside. It was a quiet of place as any, and they had a coffee maker.
"Amanda's....lost a lot of blood. It's bad. Really bad," Jean said quietly.
Topaz used the walk to compose herself. Amanda was down. She was..... technically.... Amanda's apprentice, in the broadest sense of the term. Or at least, she had never officially quit as Amanda’s assistant. She had to take charge. Once in the War Room she took a deep breath, and was happy her voice didn't shake when asked, "What happened? She said she was going to London to follow up with a contact."
Jean went to the coffeemaker and turned it on, waiting for the water to boil. It was a Keurig, so there wasn't much to wait on versus a full pot.
She took a seat against the table, hesitant to go into detail given how close the girl--woman--was to Amanda, but if it was something that had to do with what was going on, perhaps it could help.
"Someone attacked her. We found at least a dozen puncture wounds. It caused massive blood loss. I haven't seen anything like it. She somehow appeared in a treehouse on the mansion grounds. Maya found her," she said.
The light on the Keurig turned blue, and Jean popped a k-cup into holder, letting a mug fill up. She rubbed her forehead.
"She's...We are doing what we can."
Topaz had a good poker face. She always had. She processed the information without flinching, without giving any suggestion of what might have been going on her head. "She appeared in the treehouse?" Was the detail she locked, shutting down her mind at the same time. Being tired always made people project more, whether they knew it or not, and emotions were currently rolling off Jean in waves. She needed to focus. "Like, she teleported? That's..." Impossible. There was no way Amanda could have skipped over NYC and come straight to Westchester. Topaz knew how Amanda's magic worked.
If she had somehow forced herself to come straight to the mansion, then she had been running away from something bad.
The witch leaned back against the wall, running her hands through her hair and blowing out a long breath. "No idea what caused the wounds, I suppose?" She was trying to stay calm. Anyone who knew her would be able to call her on it in a heartbeat. She needed to not be called on it right now.
Jean took a sip of her coffee,sitting against the table. She knew it'd take awhile for the caffeine to kick in and the veil to lift, especially since she'd had too many cups already. She knew if she sat down she wouldn't be able to get back up enough quick enough in case someone started to code. They were barely managing to keep them alive as it is
"Not really. It was smaller than a knife, bigger than a needle. Enough to spill a lot of blood. Between her and Molly we've had to make a number of runs to the blood bank and may start needing volunteers to donate," she said, shaking her head. She didn't know what to do, especially in the face of magic, and it frustrated the hell out of her.
Topaz scrubbed her eyes, pulling out her phone to send a quick text to Clea with the information about Amanda. They'd need it for their research. "Great, okay. Magic probably. Who's strong enough to take down Amanda in her own city?"
There was a flash red, and Topaz turned just in time to see the bolt spear Amanda, flinging her into the air before impaling on the ground, Amanda still on it...
Topaz' couldn't stop her expression from darkening. It had seemed ridiculous when Amanda had suggested Adam Destine. What did he care about her? Sure, he wanted her dead, but not nearly as much as he wanted Taboo. And why attack other people from the mansion and put them more on guard? That would just make it harder. He had taken out Amanda in London, though. There had to be a line connecting these lines. Topaz just couldn't follow it.
Jean studied Topaz, who's attention suddenly seemed very far away.
"It looks like you might know who."
Topaz pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes and blowing out a long breath. "That nutter.... back in February. Not my father, the other one. But it doesn't make any sense. None of this fits them -- okay attacking Amanda might, but I'm the one they hate." She shook her head and crossed her arms, sighing again. "Guess we wait for Amanda to wake up and tell us." Because she would wake up. If it came down to it, Topaz would sell her soul to either side of the Way to make it happen. The mansion needed Amanda.
Setting her cup down, Jean was silent for a few moments. "Perhaps....they did it because they knew it would hurt you?" she said.
"The body heals. The heart....can sometimes take longer."
"Yeah well they don't me very well, do they?" Topaz pushed herself off the wall. "And clearly they know even less about the mansion. I don't care how powerful you are, when fifty-some-odd mutants come down on your head, you're fucked. S'why it doesn't make sense. There are three of them. It's not a fight they would win."
Jean took a sip of coffee. "I wouldn't rule anything out until you've won," she said gently, rubbing her face.
"Underestimating someone can be dangerous."
She let out a breath. "Still, you're right. We'll get through this," she said.
"I'm not letting anyone die on my watch."
"Yeah," Topaz said quietly. "Same."
Her phone buzzed and she reached for it without thinking, assuming it was one of the magic people wanting an update.
Her expression didn't twitch even the slightest when she saw Amanda's name attached to the message preview.
"I should get back," she said. "If anything changes with anyone, make sure you text all of us - Clea, Stephen, etc. One of us will be looking at our phones, hopefully."
Jean finished off her cup with one last gulp. The hotness of the brew didn't even seem to bother her at this point. It wasn't the best coffee, but it was damn good at the moment,
"I will," she said.
Topaz looked at her phone again, then back st Jean. The smile she gave Jean was sad, and she did nothing to hide it. “Thanks Doc,” she said quietly before slipping out and running down the hall, the screams of the victims crashing in both sides.