Rictor & Matt, backdated to July 3

[xp_rictor]

Rictor meets Matt, who offers to help with visa stuff.


Strapping his hands and making sure they were appropriately chalked, Matt strode over to where the rings were suspended over a mat, "Hey, new kid," he called to the nearby teen. He'd heard they'd gotten another new person in the past couple days, but hadn't met him yet, "Can you give me a boost?" he asked. He could get the step or ask someone else from the gym, but the kid was closest.

Rictor's self-guided tour of the mansion was neverending, and now he'd found his way to the gym. He would have turned around except for the person calling for help. "Uh, sure," he called back, stepping further into the gym. "Uh, how?"

Positioning himself so he was directly under the rings, he motioned for Rictor to come closer, "Hold my waist. When I jump, you boost me just high enough I catch the rings," it wasn't all that complicated, other than being aware of timing. "Think you can do that? If not, I can get the step, then you just have to move it out of the way."

The other man was taller and more muscular than him, but what kind of wimp would Rictor be if he refused? He was strong enough to lift him, surely. So he did as asked and came up behind Matt and put his hands on his hips. "Okay, I'm ready..."

It didn't require much of a boost to get the rings, Matt had no doubt that the other man could handle it. Grabbing the rings, he pulled himself up smoothly, giving the teen time to move out of the way and himself to get a feel for everything, "Thanks," he called, rising into swallow position then shifting into a pike, "I'm Matt, by the way!"

"Rictor," he replied after a moment, captivated by the beginning of Matt's routine. The upper body strength required to do that was beyond anything he had ever seen except on television. "This is very impressive. Do you do this a lot? Are you a professional gymnast?"

Folding forward and moving smoothly until he was in a handstand, Matt couldn't really shake his head, that would disrupt the rings. The key was to move without making them move, it was all about control, "It's part of my workout routine, but not a professional. I'm a lawyer," he released to swing into a straddle, feet pointed. "I've been training for years though. You do any sports?"

"I was in a swim club and a dance club in high school, but they were not competitive. Oh! Are you Matt the lawyer that Darcy mentioned on the journal? She said you might help me with legal papers if I need them."

"I am," he hadn't checked the journals other than to see there was someone new, he'd been busy recently, "What's going on? Or do you want to go to my office and give me a dollar?"

"Why would I give you a dollar? No, I just mean if I need help. I think everything is fine now. Mis . . . uh, Amanda checked for me before I came. But I might need another visa in a few months if I don't continue university."

Swinging through two dislocates, Matt used the momentum to execute a flyaway and dismount. "No problem," he agreed, winded but only a little. "Are you in a visitor's visa now or a student visa? Because whether you return to university or not, we need to get you one that's more long- term. And by giving me a dollar, you officially retain my services as my client. Xavier pays, but it's a technicality that's important from a legal perspective that protects us both."

"Sounds fake. Is it difficult to be a lawyer in the US that you must collect one dollar from everyone?" Unaware of Matt's blindness, Rictor grinned to signify he was joking. "I think it's a visitor's visa. I did not pay much attention to the process. Paperwork is stupid. I just wanted to get here already, sabes?"

"Claro que sí," Matt replied without thinking, turning to face Rictor, "It means you're my client which invokes lawyer- client privilege. That protects us both. And now, you won't have to do paperwork. My minions will. But I will need your passport for information. Tomorrow though, not today. My office is in the chapel."

Had the mansion grown when Rictor wasn't looking? "There's a chapel, too? What floor is it? I think I need Waze to find my way through this campus. I wasn't even supposed to come here, I was trying to find the library."

"There is... however it houses the offices and whatnot for Excalibur. Though if you're looking to pray, it's still a good place to go," Matt explained. "My office is in the basement. You'll get used to it all, it just takes a little time. Where are you from originally?"

"Mérida, la capital del estado Yucatán. It's the southeastern part of México, where the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs fell." A fun fact Rictor liked to throw in when given the opportunity. It provided the whole region a unique geology he had never felt anywhere else, certainly not Westchester County, New York. "I built an ofrenda in my room for praying. Actual churches are eh. They've done a lot of damage to las indígenas."

"Ah, sí, por supuesto. Conozco el Yucatán, aunque nunca he estado en Mérida," Matt replied in Spanish without thinking, he had taken it in college, then refined it more in law school focusing on the legal vocabulary he would need, before getting his accent corrected by the various Spanish speaking residents of New York. He might not speak it as a native speaker or with perfect fluency, but he was no basic gringo either, "True. Though, as one of those Catholics....I can take you to some churches you might enjoy more in the city," certainly not in Westchester County.

"Sure, maybe." Out from under his parents' watchful eyes and people still wanted him to go to church? "But I can come to your office tomorrow. I don't have any other plans. I just hope I can find it and not end up in a hedge maze or something."

If Rictor didn't want to go to church, Matt certainly wouldn't make him, it should be something done without coercion at this point in his life. The offer would remain open though, if he changed his mind. "Sounds good. I'm usually there later in the day or evening. I don't keep normal hours, though I try."

"Ok, then I'll see you tomorrow. Unless you need more help getting back up?"

"Nah, but thanks, I'll see you tomorrow. Good to meet you, Rictor," Matt replied.