xp_logs | Nathan and Amanda, Saturday afternoon (Reply)

After arriving home, Amanda comes upon Nathan experimenting with pancake batter. He admits defeat and they retire to the porch, where they talk about what happened in Amsterdam, Amanda's doubts about Manuel's power and what that means for their relationship, and her own concerns about her mutation. Askani pokes her nose in to propose something Amanda finds slightly disturbing and then retreats in a sulk, and Amanda gives Nathan what she brought back for him from her vacation (an aesthetically pleasing substitute for the plastic bubble).

It was good to be... well, home was as good a word as any. After two weeks of near-constant travelling and partying, Amanda was glad to be back somewhere where she could take it easy. And talk to someone other than Manuel - the last couple of days had been great (if you ignored anything to do with his father), but she'd missed her friends. So, after a shower and a change of clothes after the flight, she had wandered down to the kitchen with vague thoughts of seeing who was about.

The pancake batter was thwarting him. Nathan gave it a harassed look, then added a little more of the mix and stirred energetically. Too much, he soon realized as the mix became so thick that moving the spoon through it was difficult. Trying manfully to ignore the way a number of the Askani were snickering at him, he added some milk. At which point the mix started to get too thin again. Making a frustrated noise, he stalked over to the garbage disposal and started to pour it down the drain.

It was impossible not to laugh at the sight of Nathan, covered in pancake mix and grumbing to himself. Amanda leaned against the doorframe and watched for a moment, before the giggles got the better of her. "Beaten by pancake mix, eh?"

Nathan yelped, jumping, and there was suddenly pancake batter all over the sink. And the wall. He gave Amanda a mildly baleful look. "Don't sneak up on me," he muttered.

She gave him a curious look. "Didn't think it was possible t' sneak up on the telepathic merc," she said, still smiling - she was still feeling the remnants of the buzz she'd gotten from that mystic site in Spain, and the sight of Nathan all over pancake batter was too funny to ignore.

"They keep distracting me," he muttered, then told himself to shake it off. "And being thwarted by the pancake batter has made me cranky. Sorry. I am glad to see you." He grinned suddenly. "Welcome home," he said, and with a little whip-crack of telekinesis, sent some of the remaining batter flying across the room before Amanda could react. A sizeable dollop landed in her hair.

Amanda made a noise that would have been a girlish squeal from anyone else, and mock-glared at him. "Y'know, that's askin' for payback, an' I ain't crossin' Lorna any time soon," she told him, 'grabbing' the bowl from his hands and holding it menacingly over his head, the remnants of batter threatening to drip on his head.

Nathan wrapped the bowl in a telekinetic bubble, jumping a little at the sudden feeling of... conflict, for lack of a better word. Like feedback, almost. "Do you feel that?" he asked curiously, trying not to wince.

She frowned, nodding. It was an odd feeling, like something was taking the spell and warping the energy slightly. "Yeah. 'S right odd, that is." Shaking her head at the weirdness of the sensation, she cut the spell, seeing Nathan had a good hold on the bowl. "You ever felt anythin' like that before?"

"Once... but a little different," Nathan said, his voice a bit bleak as he remembered Morgan. Amanda gave him a questioning look, and he sighed. "A fellow telekinetic from... um, pre-Pack days. He was one of the ones who came after me. When we fought, there was... something like that. I think it must be feedback of some sort, different telekinetic frequencies or something. It's not as if telekinetics are all that common."

"An' mine ain't the real deal neither, which makes it even stranger." Seeing the bleak expression in his face, Amanda changed the subject. "So, no telekinetic food fights. How 'bout you get cleaned up so I can give you yer present an' do that whole hug thing?"

"Present?" Nathan said with a subdued grin. "And give me just one minute..." He closed his eyes, concentrating on the batter, not just what was on him but every bit of it, anywhere in the kitchen. Pulling at it, he opened his eyes to see a spinning yellowish ball in the air in front of him. "Nifty trick, huh?" he asked, glancing down at his clothes. A couple of the larger spots had left marks, but there was no batter left on him. He levitated the ball over to sink and let go, grimacing at the *sploosh!* it made.

"That's so fuckin' cool," Amanda said with a grin, glad the batter was out of her hair. "An' yeah, present. It ain't much, an' you don't have t' like it, but I thought I'd get you somethin' anyway." Taking his arm, she tugged him outside to the back porch, since it was far too nice a day to be inside as it was.

"Notice the lack of cast?" he asked, leaning a bit heavily on the cane.

"I did. Yay for progress." She couldn't help feeling slightly pleased with herself - her spells had definitely kick-started his healing rates. "How's the shoulder?"

"Getting better just as steadily," he said. "Hand still has the occasional numb spell, but they're getting fewer and farther between."

"Pun intended?" she asked, chuckling. As he rolled his eyes at her, she grinned at him again. "You missed me, admit it."

"Of course I did. Things have been far, far too quiet." As she pushed the back door open and held it for him, he gave her a slightly narrow-eyed look. "I should tell you up-front that I got, uh, a complete report from G.W."

Multiple expressions crossed Amanda's face, guilt winning out slightly over embarrassment, although she couldn't stop the blush. "Um," she said - it seemed like the only thing _to_ say. "Yeah. Just how complete are we talkin' here?"

"Every last detail," Nathan said, moderately entertained by how disconcerted she seemed. "Down to Dom proving yet again that the less I think on her taste in men, the happier I'll be. Oh, and you serving as the meat in a Garrison and Vasily sandwich."

The blush intensified, and Amanda muttered something in Sumerian that was probably a very bad word. "Would it help if I said it was an accident?" she asked. "Not that I'm sorry 'bout what I got up to, just that it wasn't intentional, is all. On anyone's part."

"What, you were expecting me to snarl at you about it?" Nathan sighed, going over and collapsing in one of the chairs. "Forgetting the Melbourne story already, are we? I'm well aware that things get out of hand sometimes. The only one I'm inclined to snarl at is Dom for unlocking Manuel's dampener in the first place."

"Well you an' Manny don't exactly have a good history." Amanda looked relieved, 'though, as the expected lecture seemed unlikely. "An' he's pretty cut up 'bout it. Which is sort of a good thing, when you look at it, I s'pose." She took a seat on the steps, far away and downwind enough so she could smoke - she was still catching up after the flight from Spain.

"Forget Manuel for now," Nathan said. "Are you okay? Not that Gar and Vas are the type to be rough, even under the influence, but... well."

"I... dunno." Unwilling to look Nathan in the face, Amanda glanced out over the yard, lush with green lawn. "The boys an' me had a great old time, best I've had for a while. But knowin' Manny has that much power sort of scared me a bit. I ain't seen him go that out of control before, even before the dampener. Guess Dom was more than he could handle." She pulled the bettered pack of cigarettes out of her jeans pocket then, using the fire spell to light up since she was still carrying a bit more power than she liked.

"It's probably for the best that you did see it," Nathan said quietly. Amanda gave him a quick, startled look, and he shook his head. "Since it did happen, I mean. I'm not saying it's a good thing, but at least you know, now. You've seen what he's capable of."

"Dom said somethin' like that," Amanda said, exhaling smoke in a sigh. "An' I s'pose yer both right. Just... all right, he's dampened until he learns control, an' he's tryin' hard. An' the day he gets that thing off for good will be a right old excuse for a party. I don't get that choice. Every time I get close t' anythin' like me full power, I go off the deep end - that email I sent you was bad enough, an' that was just me runnin' on what Rom's amulet lets me have. An' as long as I get me jollies off me power, there's no way I'm gunna be able t' go without. So if somethin' happens, an' Manny does go bad, where does that leave me? Up shit creek without a paddle."

"You ought to talk to Moira," Nathan said after a moment. "About what it's like to be in an automatic power imbalance in a relationship." He smiled faintly. "She compensates in other areas."

"That's the thing, it ain't automatic. I've got the power - or I could have, if I could bloody well control it better - but I ain't allowed t' even come close t' me limits. I either end up burnin' meself out, or settin' off the whole addiction thing. 'S fuckin' frustratin', it is." Amanda hunched her shoulders a little and glared out at the lawn. "I hate bein' so fuckin' weak sometimes."

"You are hardly weak." The words came out a little more sharply than he'd intended, and she gave him a defensive look. He ignored it and went on. "As for the control problem... I'm not sure why Strange and Romany haven't actively enlisted Moira's help, but they should have. She managed to train me to molecular-level telekinetic control. Who knows what she could do for you, given sufficient time and your cooperation?" He made a helpless gesture. "Training your magic is necessary, obviously, but I think your mutation's been neglected."

"I think Rom an' Strange don't know what t' do with me mutation, so they pretend it don't exist," said Amanda, with a sigh. "An' I'm grateful for everythin' they've done, but all I get is 'as long as you don't have the control, you keep wearing the amulet'. Which is all well an' good, but I ain't learnin' the control. I mean, I've been goin' t' the energy manipulation classes, an' they've helped some, but it ain't the same thing, an' no-one seems t' know what t' do with me. I did ask Moira, tho', when she mentioned workin' with powers over the hols." She wrinkled her nose. "An' here I was in such a good mood too. Tho' that probably weren't natural, any way. 'M still a bit buzzed from that place in Spain."

Nathan rubbed absently at his hand. "You worried me, with that email," he muttered. "Anyhow. Give Moira a chance this summer, see how it goes. She's liable to surprise you."

"'M sorry. I should have known better than t' get near the computer in that state. It wasn't a bad one, an' not all magic neither - that place had some pretty powerful vibes that even Manny was pickin' up." A distinctly wicked grin crossed her face. "We kind of set each other off a bit. An' yeah, I'm willin' t' try anythin' at this stage, an' Moira knows her stuff. So, we'll see." Stretching, she turned back around on the steps so she was looking at Nathan. "What was all that stuff 'bout Askani in yer mail? I read it again when I'd come down a bit, an' it was a bit unsettlin'."

"Uh... we don't have to..." Nathan winced, tilting his head as Askani blazed down out of the starry sky above his mental beach and took shape on the sand, giving him a significant look. "Okay, maybe we do," he sighed in helpless frustration as she started to murmur almost vehemently in the battle language. His head was starting to ache a little, and he grimaced, shaking his head. "~Oath, I am not at your beck and call, when are you going to understand that?~" he snapped in Askani, aloud.

"An' this would be why I find the whole thing unsettlin'," Amanda muttered, mostly to herself. She got up and moved to Nathan's chair, touching his forearm. "Nate? You all right?"

Nathan bit his lip, concentrating on breathing deeply for a moment and listening to Askani. "She wants... oh, this is cute, now she tells me... She does want to do for you what she did for Alison. So that you understand..." He trailed off, grimacing again. "I don't understand," he muttered, more to himself than to Askani. "Manuel? It has something to do with Manuel. I don't get it..."

"'Cause I ain't already had enough people pushin' their powers on me in the last month," Amanda said, a touch waspishly. "I just said I got freaked out by Manny's power, an' she wants t' re-write part of me head? What's wrong with the good old-fashioned way of talkin' t' me? I ain't that stupid that I won't get what she's tryin' t' say."

Nathan gave an edgy laugh, shaking his head. "A point, a definite point..." Askani growled, and he gritted his teeth. "Don't you dare," he grated, sensing the sudden intensification of her presence as the firebird flashed into life on the beach. "Do it and I'll concuss myself, I swear..."

"No you bloody well won't," growled Amanda, kneeling next to his chair and speaking to Askani directly. "Listen, Grand High Pooba Woman. You want me to understand, you ain't goin' about it the best way - you promised you wouldn't hurt him if you could avoid it, remember? So, if this is so bloody important, calm the fuck down an' explain it t' us both, otherwise I've got a sleep spell that'll knock him out for a good few hours an' you'll just have t' wait until he wakes up." She gave Nathan an apologetic look. "Better than knocking yerself out, yeah?"

"Marginally," Nathan said, gritting his teeth and closing his eyes for a moment. #You can borrow my voice,# he said. #No manifesting this time.# Fire flashed across the inside of his eyelids and he felt himself pushed aside, if more gently than he'd expected, as Askani took control.

"You are afraid," she said, her accent edging his voice as she opened his eyes and stared down at Amanda. "You do not see him clearly, as you are. See with our eyes and the problem may not seem as unsolvable."

"'S not just him I'm scared of," Amanda replied, with pointed honesty. "How is what yer wantin' t' do any different t' Rack forcin' me t' get involved with magic in the first place? Or that time me an' Manny overlapped? Seems t' me people keep wantin' t' make me see things their way without givin' a rat's for what I want."

"It would not change how you think," Askani said, sounding aggravated. "You have watched Nathan since our arrival. Do you detect any real changes in his personality? Or speak to Alison."

"Well, no...But you don't have t' change me personality t' change the way I think." Amanda admitted. "An' I still don't see why it needs t' be done this way. What if we do this, an' I do see things through yer eyes... it'll change things with Manny, even if I'm still the same. Might make him not trust me any more, an' then we're both in the shite, if I'm as important in all this as you think I am."

Nathan could almost taste Askani's frustration. #Plenty of time at this end of history,# he reminded her, and closed his eyes, managing not to flinch as she withdrew again, not quite so gently this time. "She's impatient," he said heavily, opening his eyes again and smiling slightly at Amanda. He'd gotten a fairly good glimpse at what Askani was thinking, at least. "Worried, I guess. I think she's dropped the idea, though. She sees your point."

Amanda raised her eyebrow at that - she'd expected Askani to push the point a bit harder. "It ain't like I ain't willin' t' hear what she has t' say, or even maybe eventually doin' things her way. 'S just... there's so much goin' on, so much I'm tryin' t' sort out in me life, an' it feels like everyone's pushin' me t' follow 'em. Like I ain't right the way I am now." She gave him a wry smile. "I just want time t' think 'bout it, maybe talk t' Manny, see if the idea freaks him out. You know, make a choice."

"Makes perfect sense to me," Nathan said, meaning it. It was good to see Amanda standing up for herself like that. He heard another growl from Askani and ignored it; if she wasn't willing to explain precisely why she thought this was a good idea, he wasn't about to listen to her bitch about it. "And if you came back to her and said you'd like her to give you what she gave Alison, I imagine she'd be agreeable." He leaned back in the chair a little, trying to banish the residual tension. "I didn't want to welcome you home with that," he grumbled, irritated with Askani and with himself.

"'S all right - it wouldn't be a proper homecomin' here without some kind of kerfuffle," Amanda replied, her smile coming more easily as she got up from her kneeling position beside his chair and leaned back against the railing. The forgotten cigarette in her hand drew attention to itself by coming close to burning her fingers and she hastily stubbed it out in the sand bucket. "Which reminds me, I have somethin' for you." She reached into her back pocket and pulled out something small, but hesitated, suddenly awkward. "I dunno if it's somethin' you'd want, but Aspen an' me went t' a couple of the magic supply places in London an', well, I figured..." She realised she was babbling and held out a small silver medallion, enscribed in a language Nathan didn't recognise. "'S a protection charm, meant t' keep you from harm. Or at least give you fair warnin'," she said, blushing a bit.

Nathan took the medallion, intrigued. "You know me too well," he said, examining it closely for a moment before looking up at her and grinning hugely. "Entirely too well. How does it work?"

"You keep it on you - I didn't think you were the sort t' wear jewellry, otherwise I'd have put it on a chain for you, but you can stick it on yer key chain or in yer wallet or somethin'. There's a spell I need t' do, t' make it yours..." Amanda relaxed at his obvious pleasure - even after the magic he'd seen and felt her do, she was still awkward about reminding people just what her powers were.

"Much nicer than a plastic bubble," Nathan said wickedly, grinning even more widely when she laughed. "Do I need to give it back to you to do the spell?"

"Yeah, well, that's still an option. Just need t' talk t' Jamers about it," she warned, grinning. Then she shook her head. "Nah, just hold it in yer hand while I do the spell." She closed his fingers over the medallion lying in his hand, closing her eyes and murmuring quietly as she cast the spell. His hand tingled briefly, like a jolt of static electricity, and she opened her eyes and chuckled at his twitch. "There, done. Won't stop bullets or nothin', but you might get an inklin' of when someone means you harm."

"Thank you," Nathan said sincerely, his smile softening. "I'll be keeping this on me 24/7, just to let you know..." She giggled softly, and he was suddenly almost overwhelmed with relief at how happy she looked. The vacation had done her good. "You should come upstairs with me and get your bowl," he suggested.

"I should," she agreed eagerly, offering him her hand to help him up out of the chair.

He took it. "Then, I guess, I ought to tell you a story or three," he said with a smile, already mentally reviewing the history lectures the clan historians had given on Friday night. Some things were best done the long way.