Paige and Pete talk Jono

[x-foliate.livejournal.com]

Paige pushed open the doors to outside with extra fervor, a wide grin plastered onto her face. The week of working on her new husk had left her no time to just relax outside, and even going for her morning workout with Nemesis had turned into her one bittersweet escape. Turning her face to the sky, she basked for a moment, careful not to trip on her way down the stairs, trying to decide what exactly she would do first in her freedom. It was then that she heard the not so far off mutterings of someone, obviously male, hidden in a cloud of smoke.

“Hello?” she called out nervously, arching her neck to try and get a better angle from where she was standing.

“Sodding unless rag! I want to know what's going on in the rest of the bleeding world, not just bastard America!"

Wisdom was perched on the edge of a chair, half a newspaper strewn across the table him scanning through the news, glaring at it like it was personally offensive. He stubbed a cigarette out, fished another one out of a battered packet, and lit it with the tip of his finger.

At the sound of Paige's voice, he glanced around briefly. "Morning…Guthrie, isn't it? Paige?"

She smiled at the recognition, trying not to remind herself that he probably only knew her from the baby pictures Sam insisted on keeping in his room. “Yes, sir. And you’re Mr. Wisdom.”

Crossing the lawn she stood slightly to the side of him, away from the smoke, and gave him a sympathetic look. “The newspaper has decided that the U S of A is the only country worthy of ink, has it?”

"Christ, call me Pete. Mr. Wisdom's me Dad's name." The scowl lifted for a second, then returned as he glanced back at the paper. "Ah, it's not just the paper. Heard from a friend of mine that when the president took office, a memo went round the intel agencies with a summary of the new US foreign policy that said - "

He caught himself. "Oh sod it - you don't need to hear me going off on one, and it's not that exciting. So what're you up to this morning?"

Pulling up a chair, she sat down, pulling up a leg under her with a smile. “Well, see, I don’t really have any plans other than not working, so it’s the most exciting thing in ages. Even if I don’t understand most of it since there was no conclusion to that sentence.” Her smile broke into a grin, radiant as she teased. “Poor, innocent farmgirl, I know.”

"Poor and innocent?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I grew up in Essex. I know what farm kids are like. You don't fool me. The gist of the memo was basically 'America is the only moral nation in the world and we must be prepared to make all other nations realise this, by force, if necessary.' Frightened a load of people, I can tell you."

He leant back in his chair, and winced slightly. "But I'm not about to start talking about American foreign policy on my holiday, thanks. So let's change the subject. You've only been here a month or two, right? What d'you think of the place?"

Nodding, Paige brushed her hair behind her ear, suddenly very much liking this Pete Wisdom. He didn’t bother to treat her as a child and was so much more brisk than most of the people here. The subtle word twists had begun to grind on her nerves these days. She respected his change of subject, setting her elbow on the armrest of her chair to prep her answer.

“It’s big,” she started, “And I’m fully aware how lame that sounds. Really, though, I haven’t formed an opinion I’m too proud of at that moment. The people are generally nice at least, even if they are a little tight knit and occasionally anti-social. And the food! The food is great, even if there is an obsession with iced cream and coffee for reasons I don’t understand.”

"Can't help you with the ice cream thing, but the coffee's one of the reasons I come back." He gestured at the half empty mug on the table. "I'm not daft enough to touch Munroe's good stuff, but Charlie's isn't bad, anyway."

He thought for a minute. "I know what you mean about tight-knit, though. It's this 'living in a world that fears and hates us' nonsense that the Prof and Magneto are so bloody keen on that does it, I think. Makes everyone band together against the outside world, and woe betide anyone who doesn't fit into their little group. As for anti-social - well, you take any large group of teenagers, lock them up together, than add more problem than a typical teenager has, and see what happens."

Smiling somewhat wryly, Paige shook her head. “That’s not why I came here and it almost disappoints me, as much as I hate to admit it.” She looked stern for a moment, giving him a level look. “Don’t you go blathering it all over the school, either. I came here to learn, and although that’s happening now, it’s still discouraging. I mean, look at Jono. Look how long it took them to get him that weird shirt of his, and it wasn’t because they were trying and failing, it was just a lack of trying. And all these new ideology’s on being a mutant – that we’re freaks, that we should hide, that we are better than the rest – it’s just… discouraging. Maybe it’s the real reason I locked myself up in my room, I don’t know.” She halted her rant, looking somewhat bashful, and tilted her head so that a piece of hair would fall into her eyes. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be telling you this, should I?”

"Tell me whatever you like. Who'm I going to tell?" Pete stubbed his cigarette out. "Don't get me started on Jono. I had to kick the staff up the arse to actually look into his problems, and even then, it was Emma who did it. Don't get me wrong, I like Emma, and I'm hugely grateful that he's done what she has, but Jono needs time with a qualified therapist, but baldy's too busy working off his guilt complex to give a fuck. I don't know how to handle the kid, even if I was here for more than one week in six."

He grinned. "Mind you, I think Charlie's in for a bit of a shock, sooner or later, when half the kids he's got here refuse all this us-and-them nonsense…."

“So you’re the one who finally got the professors up and running? Was wondering whom I was supposed to thank. So… thanks. But does anyone know how to handle Jonothan?” Throwing her legs over the other arm of the chair her grin faded. “I know I’ve only been here a little while, but… I worry already. A lot.”

"You and me both. You and me both. He's so dead set on seeing himself as a freak, that he won't have an honest stab at being friends, because he can't believe anyone would want to be friends with him, now."

He lit another cigarette.

"Don't tell him, but I went and talked to some of his old friends, just to find out what he was like before all this." Pete paused for a second.

"Jono was the life of the party, apparently. Outgoing, friendly, a load of fun. But when he exploded like that, he injured his girlfriend as well. She's in a wheelchair, now, paralyzed from the waist down. So between feeling guilty about that, and feeling like a freak, he's given himself two really good reasons not to let anyone get close…"

Paling, Paige just barely managed to choke out a, “God.” before pushing her hair back, trying to collect her thoughts. “No wonder his thinks he has to protect me.” And I hit him because of it.

"Yeah. Wherever his head's at, it ain't pretty. Won't let anyone get close, because he might hurt them, so can't be convinced he's not half the freak he thinks. I hope that'll get better as he learns a bit of control, puts his jaw back together. But that might take a while."

Wisdom drained his coffee.

"Still, at least he won't take pity."

“Except when his lack of pity goes one step too far and turns into lack of any emotion,” she replied, turning slightly so that she wouldn’t have to look at Pete. “I’d do just about anything to see him happy, even once in a while. But that’s wishful thinking I suppose.”

Watching her companion out of the corner of her eye, she asked, “Do you think he’ll actually be able to put himself back together? Or is that just something the doctor’s are telling him for hopes sake?”

Pete looked away for a second, grinning to himself. Going to win that bet…

"I think it's possible, sure. For all Essex is a cold bastard, he's one of the best in the field, and McCoy and Emma seem to agree with him. So yeah, I'll go along with Essex, and say that he'll be able to one day. How long it'll take, I don't know."

Paige ignored his knowing grin, pretending she hadn’t seen and, even better, didn’t understand. “Well, that’s good news. Hope is necessary, even for people like Jono.”

"Especially for people like Jono." Just for a second, Pete looked like he was about to say something else, then thought better of it.

"But enough of tall, dark and sparkly for a minute. What's the deal with Marie? I'm the last to join the hugs and happiness club, but christ..."

Her somewhat giddy grin faded at the mention of Marie. “I’m going to overstep my roomie boundaries and say that she’s feeling betrayed. I don’t know her whole story, haven’t been here long enough and it’s certainly not something you walk up and ask about, but that’s what I’m understanding from what I do know.”

"Swear to christ, someone needs to get Charlie out of that tin can of his, and actually doing his bastard job. Because right now, I'm getting the idea that Essex is more use to this school than he is, and that's not an idea I care to think about in any detail. He's going to find his precious 'dream' dead in the water if he doesn't do something about it."

Paige listened to his outburst with a startled expression, shock shifting into understanding. There was a long pause between when Pete had finished and Paige began. “I don’t think he forgives himself. For what happened.”

"Probably not. But the job he set himself, the job I agreed to give him a hand with wasn't cataloging every mutant on earth, was it? What's the point of finding ten thousand mutants if he's not helping the ones he has bleeding found?"

He paused a second, and lit another cigarette of the stub of the last one.

"Don't get me wrong, some of the staff here are first rate. But so far as I can see, the only ones who give a shit about the kids outside of making sure the coursework gets done are Frosty, Essex and Summers. And I'm not sure that I'd put any of them top of the class when it comes to techniques in dealing with the emotionally distant, you know?"

She couldn’t but smile somewhat wryly, an odd look on her otherwise innocent outward appearance. “Perhaps that’s why we’re here.”

"How d'you mean?"

“You seem to have a way with the more… difficult of the students here and I- Well, I just irritate them until talking to me is the only way out.”

He looked shocked.

"Jesus, do I? Believe me, that's not the plan. The only thing I've got a way with is several crimes in me mis-spent youth. I'm dead last one the list of people qualified to deal with teenage problems - I was the posterboy for the teenage rebellion and adolescent trauma, me."

Pete grinned.

"But y'know, please, keep irritating them. It gives me a sort of vicious pleasure to know there's someone around here that's going to drive them demented."

He stood up, picking up his coffee mug.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go and find some more coffee, and then I've got to phone a few people in the military-industrial complex, and put the wind up them."

Returning his grin, Paige nodded. “It was nice meeting you. Don’t overdose on the fun now.”

Resisting giving him a hug, Paige made her way down to the barn, naturally, pausing only to turn around and wave.

Comments

[x-dazzler.livejournal.com]

TITANIUM LOVE SHACK! WHEEE!

*waves flag, vamping about*

:D

[x-foliate.livejournal.com]

... you get her that for her birthday and she will cry.

...

DO IT.

[x-dazzler.livejournal.com]

*rotflmao*

Now wondering where to find the titanium. Meh heh heh!

[x-polarisstar.livejournal.com]

*waves with a metal mangling hand*

[x-dazzler.livejournal.com]

Hired! Now... wonder how Scott would react if we yoinked some of the metal in storage...

*plots*

[x-polarisstar.livejournal.com]

It's got to be in storage for something, doesn't it? What else if not to be used for our nefarious noble purposes?

[x-dazzler.livejournal.com]

You're absolutely right. It's all for a good cause.

And... Scott is out of town as of tonight! >:D

[x-polarisstar.livejournal.com]

It's like an invitation!

[x-dazzler.livejournal.com]

...

And it's not like the security system could stop us if we both worked together...

*grins!*

[x-polarisstar.livejournal.com]

Electromagnetism to fool the computers and Lasers to fool the retinal scan.

Security doesn't stand a chance!

[x-crowdofone.livejournal.com]

There's a retinal scan on the storage shed? It was kinda, you know, unlocked when I got the rebar for the giant cookie slingshot. Maybe you guys are trying to break into the Professor's porn by mistake?

[x-polarisstar.livejournal.com]

That's the general storage shed. We're talking about Scott's storage unit and hell yeah, that's got a retinal scan. I think it may even be rigged to blow if it doesn't get a proper dna sample.

[x-crowdofone.livejournal.com]

I didn't know retinal scanners worked through those shades. Are you sure you know what you're doing?

And who says you have to go through the door? Lasers can cut through stuff like walls. :)