Topaz and Kurt || Friday Afternoon
May. 3rd, 2019 02:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsKurt experiences Avalon. Topaz does her best to help.
What is that? I don't even think it's Latin. Bloody..."
Topaz was mumbling to herself, earphones in as she worked. She took out her phone to take a picture of the old placard, adding it to her 'For Doug' folder, and stuck a green Post-It note on the placard. Ancient magic users had no sense of organization....
Her head perked up a little when she felt a slight ripple in her little bubble of awareness. She tried not to let herself get too complacent in Avalon, and always had her usually shielding thinned a bit. Although there were always some people she could feel coming a mile away.
She looked out around the shelf at the end of the aisle she was in, brightening her light ball in a vain attempt to make the place a little less gloomy. "Kurt?"
He didn't seem to be having any trouble finding his way in the dark space.
"Hello, Topaz. I was told you have reached the limit of your time here for today."
"Have I?" She did a poor job of looking surprised as she pulled out her earphones. Her warning alarm had gone off half an hour ago and she'd ignored it. "All right, all right. Let me grab my bag. She went back to where she'd left off, grabbing her bag and scribbling a few things in her notebook before putting it away. "How'd you end up on baby-sitting duty?"
“I came to see if you would like to go for a meal”, he said with a slight shrug, “and was told you were in here.”
"Fair." Topaz shouldered her bag, heading back to Kurt and snapping her fingers as she went, putting out her various lights."Alani's been handlin' the library so I've been down here more..."
As the lights went out, Kurt suddenly stiffened, turning towards one of the darkest corners. "Did you hear - Jimi?"
"What?" Topaz paused at the end of the aisle, not quite connecting what Kurt had said. She had never met the Szardos clan, and of course she had never thought it was her place to ask anything.
"Jimi", he said again, straining to see even with his night vision. "I can hear you, but I cannot see..."
"Kurt." Topaz stepped forward, holding up her hand to shine a light and illuminate the area around them. "It's just the two of us. There's no one else here."
He turned to blink at her, then back into the empty space. "But she was calling me... she is calling me. Over there. now."
"It's this place," Topaz said, waving a hand around. "It messes with your head. It's just us here, I promise."
"But this place. It is... or it might be... connected? To other places?"
"The only place we've found that it connects to is England. This dimension's England." She side-stepped a bit, trying to get into Kurt's view. "You see me, right? And you can hear me. And I know saying trust me is a laugh considering how often I manage to screw things up, but in this one case... trust me? Please?"
He looked back at her again.
"You know I do. But what if she is not dead? What if she is only lost, somewhere?"
"You're not going to find her here," Topaz said, still casting around in her mind for the name. "Jimi... one of your sisters, right? I thought Amanda tracked down all your family?"
"Jimaine." His voice was quiet and sad. "She did... most of them. It seems that when - " He stopped himself by force of habit, then realized no one could hear them here. "When the world was remade, Jimaine did not come with it. She was never here."
"She was never..." The implication caught up fast, and Topaz could have slapped herself. "Oh. Christ. I'm sorry." Four years late, no big deal. "Let's just... get out of here. Whatever you're hearing, it's not real, and you're not going to get anything." She held out an uncertain hand for Kurt.
He could still hear his sister's voice, but fainter the more Topaz spoke to him. With one last look at something that wasn't there to see, he took her hand.
"At least it gave me this, for a moment. The sound of her voice."
Topaz smiled wryly. "Most people don't usually enjoy whatever Avalon decides to use against them." She tugged Kurt toward the door as she spoke, suddenly very eager to be out of here.
He let her pull him towards the exit.
"Enjoy, perhaps is the wrong word. But it was... her. Avalon decides?"
"Well, I guess whatever ancient magic is running the place decides is more accurate, but it's also more of a mouthful." She shrugged. "There's just... something about Avalon that creeps people out and makes them want to not stay. So far I've got hearings things, seeing things, messing with powers, and just plain 'get me the hell out of here.'"
"Meant as a security measure, perhaps." He looked over his shoulder again, then back at the light from the door. "But sometimes, it seems, it missteps."
"I dunno." Topaz looked back one last time before they walked back into the chapel. That was certainly the first time it had successfully driven her out. "You okay?"
She could see him putting his stoic mask back on even as he spoke, however shaken he was underneath. “Yes. It only brought up the memories.”
Topaz turned completely to look at him, frowning as she took a moment to run through her options. She could let it go, like she usually did. It was none of her business. Or... "I mean, yeah. I get that. It's... ya know - it's okay if you're not okay."
He heard what she said, and what she was trying to say, and she was right, but... “I learned a very, very long time ago to never not be okay, whatever anyone said to me, or about me, or in my general vicinity. It is not such an easy habit to break.”
Topaz raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I get that. But you're talking to a graduate from Xavier's School of It's Okay To Have Feelings. And you know no one's ever let me get away with that. I might even be a better person for it."
That made him laugh a little. "I suppose I am probably one of the people who has told you that, yes."
"I seem to recall that." She wasn't quite good enough to pull off an innocent smile, but she tried. "I know it's none of my business, and obviously there's a lot going on, but if you want to talk..." She shrugged. "I can't promise sage advice, but I'll listen."
"Now we have left Avalon, we probably should not talk here. We could go for a drive?"
"Right." Topaz looked around, reaching back for her bag to make sure she had her keys. "Shall we?"
"We shall", he agreed. "And I shall try to talk."
"I'm told trying is the best place to start."
What is that? I don't even think it's Latin. Bloody..."
Topaz was mumbling to herself, earphones in as she worked. She took out her phone to take a picture of the old placard, adding it to her 'For Doug' folder, and stuck a green Post-It note on the placard. Ancient magic users had no sense of organization....
Her head perked up a little when she felt a slight ripple in her little bubble of awareness. She tried not to let herself get too complacent in Avalon, and always had her usually shielding thinned a bit. Although there were always some people she could feel coming a mile away.
She looked out around the shelf at the end of the aisle she was in, brightening her light ball in a vain attempt to make the place a little less gloomy. "Kurt?"
He didn't seem to be having any trouble finding his way in the dark space.
"Hello, Topaz. I was told you have reached the limit of your time here for today."
"Have I?" She did a poor job of looking surprised as she pulled out her earphones. Her warning alarm had gone off half an hour ago and she'd ignored it. "All right, all right. Let me grab my bag. She went back to where she'd left off, grabbing her bag and scribbling a few things in her notebook before putting it away. "How'd you end up on baby-sitting duty?"
“I came to see if you would like to go for a meal”, he said with a slight shrug, “and was told you were in here.”
"Fair." Topaz shouldered her bag, heading back to Kurt and snapping her fingers as she went, putting out her various lights."Alani's been handlin' the library so I've been down here more..."
As the lights went out, Kurt suddenly stiffened, turning towards one of the darkest corners. "Did you hear - Jimi?"
"What?" Topaz paused at the end of the aisle, not quite connecting what Kurt had said. She had never met the Szardos clan, and of course she had never thought it was her place to ask anything.
"Jimi", he said again, straining to see even with his night vision. "I can hear you, but I cannot see..."
"Kurt." Topaz stepped forward, holding up her hand to shine a light and illuminate the area around them. "It's just the two of us. There's no one else here."
He turned to blink at her, then back into the empty space. "But she was calling me... she is calling me. Over there. now."
"It's this place," Topaz said, waving a hand around. "It messes with your head. It's just us here, I promise."
"But this place. It is... or it might be... connected? To other places?"
"The only place we've found that it connects to is England. This dimension's England." She side-stepped a bit, trying to get into Kurt's view. "You see me, right? And you can hear me. And I know saying trust me is a laugh considering how often I manage to screw things up, but in this one case... trust me? Please?"
He looked back at her again.
"You know I do. But what if she is not dead? What if she is only lost, somewhere?"
"You're not going to find her here," Topaz said, still casting around in her mind for the name. "Jimi... one of your sisters, right? I thought Amanda tracked down all your family?"
"Jimaine." His voice was quiet and sad. "She did... most of them. It seems that when - " He stopped himself by force of habit, then realized no one could hear them here. "When the world was remade, Jimaine did not come with it. She was never here."
"She was never..." The implication caught up fast, and Topaz could have slapped herself. "Oh. Christ. I'm sorry." Four years late, no big deal. "Let's just... get out of here. Whatever you're hearing, it's not real, and you're not going to get anything." She held out an uncertain hand for Kurt.
He could still hear his sister's voice, but fainter the more Topaz spoke to him. With one last look at something that wasn't there to see, he took her hand.
"At least it gave me this, for a moment. The sound of her voice."
Topaz smiled wryly. "Most people don't usually enjoy whatever Avalon decides to use against them." She tugged Kurt toward the door as she spoke, suddenly very eager to be out of here.
He let her pull him towards the exit.
"Enjoy, perhaps is the wrong word. But it was... her. Avalon decides?"
"Well, I guess whatever ancient magic is running the place decides is more accurate, but it's also more of a mouthful." She shrugged. "There's just... something about Avalon that creeps people out and makes them want to not stay. So far I've got hearings things, seeing things, messing with powers, and just plain 'get me the hell out of here.'"
"Meant as a security measure, perhaps." He looked over his shoulder again, then back at the light from the door. "But sometimes, it seems, it missteps."
"I dunno." Topaz looked back one last time before they walked back into the chapel. That was certainly the first time it had successfully driven her out. "You okay?"
She could see him putting his stoic mask back on even as he spoke, however shaken he was underneath. “Yes. It only brought up the memories.”
Topaz turned completely to look at him, frowning as she took a moment to run through her options. She could let it go, like she usually did. It was none of her business. Or... "I mean, yeah. I get that. It's... ya know - it's okay if you're not okay."
He heard what she said, and what she was trying to say, and she was right, but... “I learned a very, very long time ago to never not be okay, whatever anyone said to me, or about me, or in my general vicinity. It is not such an easy habit to break.”
Topaz raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I get that. But you're talking to a graduate from Xavier's School of It's Okay To Have Feelings. And you know no one's ever let me get away with that. I might even be a better person for it."
That made him laugh a little. "I suppose I am probably one of the people who has told you that, yes."
"I seem to recall that." She wasn't quite good enough to pull off an innocent smile, but she tried. "I know it's none of my business, and obviously there's a lot going on, but if you want to talk..." She shrugged. "I can't promise sage advice, but I'll listen."
"Now we have left Avalon, we probably should not talk here. We could go for a drive?"
"Right." Topaz looked around, reaching back for her bag to make sure she had her keys. "Shall we?"
"We shall", he agreed. "And I shall try to talk."
"I'm told trying is the best place to start."
