xp_logs | Kurt and Wanda

Earlier this morning, Kurt shows Wanda around the mansion like he promised he would. She pays more attention to their conversation than where they're going, really and gets to know him a little more.

As he'd arranged with her beforehand, Kurt made his way to the main kitchen to meet Wanda, to give her the promised tour of the house. She was already waiting when he arrived, and he walked into the room with a smile. "Good morning."

Wanda waved her mug of tea at him in reply, trying to finish the last few bites of the toast she had made for herself. "Good morning," she said, finally, swallowing quickly. Yes, he was still blue and with a tail--she hadn't imagined all of that. "Nice morning at that, as well."

Kurt grinned at her. "There is no need to rush your breakfast. The house - and the grounds, since it is nice outside - will still be there in a few more minutes."

She snickered slightly and pushed off from the counter she had been leaning on. "Ah, but I would rather get started sooner than later--there's nothing like learning new surroundings with new people."

"Where have you seen already?" he asked curiously, not wanting to show her things she already knew when there was so much else to see.

Wanda stopped and thought about it, finger tapping slightly on the mug. "The garage. A few of the upstairs rooms but mainly my own. Oh and the stables. I'm still finding that I'm trying to get my bearings so I haven't wandered as much as I would normally."

"But wandering can be the best way to do that", Kurt replied lightly. "In cities, at least. Perhaps it is different in large houses - this is the first of this size I have lived in."

"Living in, yes, this is the largest for me as well. When I'm not traveling, I have a small apartment in London." She raised an eyebrow as they walked through the corridor. "It is, obviously, nothing like this."

"Before I came here, as you know, I was with the circus in Germany. Life was comfortable there, but not near this level of luxury."

At the mention of the circus, Wanda's face lit up. "I guess I should explain why I recognized you," she said lightly, smiling at the pleased expression on Kurt's face. "I am an anthropologist and for research, I travel quite a bit. I was doing work on traveling folk and happened to be in Munich to catch a show. Unfortunately, I was unable to talk to you after performance but I did talk to a few others in the camp."

He nodded. "For the most part, I did not speak with audiences after performance. We felt it was best if they continued to believe that this - " He gestured to himself. " - was nothing more than clever make-up and illusion."

She studied him for a moment, seriously. It was a bit startling, to say the least, the first time. But she had seen him at the circus and then the rescue--she shook her head and shrugged. "If you want my opinion, I think it's rather cute myself. But I can understand why, even if I was slightly disappointed at the time. But I did speak with a few others, well-informed ones, actually. I am trying to remember who..."

"My mother was high-placed in the circus", he said thoughtfully. "She might well have been among those you spoke to. Margali Szardos?"

Wanda snapped her fingers. "Yes, that is it! I doubt I would have been given access if I hadn't been Rom, on top of the fact that German is one of the languages that I am fluent in."

Kurt smiled. "What did your research cover?" he asked curiously. "Margali may have mentioned it to me."

"At that time, I believe it was written and oral history. I was trying to compile research on the various ways different groups passed information and their history down to their children. Not to mention writing some of the more interesting ones down."

Kurt beamed at her. "It was one of the things I most loved about being raised among the Rom. Stories around the fire..."

"Same here, truthfully. Open skies, warm fires, and friends around it, talking. Always talking."

"Not even friends so much as family", he said wistfully. "All family, whether there was a blood link or not."

Her eyes darted over to him and she smiled. "I see you miss it almost as much as I do. Leaving before I wished did not sit well with me."

Kurt nodded, and told her quietly, "I, too, am here because of William Stryker. I do not know if you had access to CNN, just over a year ago?"

"Yes, I did catch some of the news then." Her eyes widened. "The president...?"

"That was me", he confirmed. "I was... not myself at the time."

Wanda's mind went back and she suddenly remembered a conversation between the men, something about wishing they had what their boss had. Something to control mutants. "I cannot imagine being under someone else's control," she replied, sympathy in her voice. Rom were notorious for loving their freedom.

He nodded, eyes distant. "I did not come back to myself until one of the President's guards shot me - fortunately only in the shoulder. And then I fled to the church in Boston where the Professor's people eventually found me."

They were slowly walking through the house and Wanda was noting where everything was. The person next to her and the conversation was more interesting than the mansion, though. "You do not blame yourself for that, though?" she asked, suddenly.

He shrugged. "I did, a little. If only because... if I had only reacted a little quicker when they came for me, they could never have taken me. They took me by surprise with a tranquillizer dart, because I was not paying attention."

The shrug she gave him was small. "If only I had paid attention when I got on my flight, if I had used my powers before everything got started--" Wanda shook her head. "We cannot second guess ourselves, Kurt. Things happen and we do what we can to fix them."

He smiled slightly. "And that is why I am still here. I teach the children, I go out with the team when I am called to do so. It is a way to fix things."

She nodded, smiling again. "Sometimes fixing things more than makes up for everything else." Wanda tilted her head slightly as they passed through the sun room. "You said team? Would this be the...X-Men?" Pietro, in his last letter, had given her the warning about his 'team members' potential plans. He had dropped Scott Summers name, Xaivers and the word "X-Men" to her.

Kurt nodded. "That is us, yes. The others who came to free you from Stryker's men are also on the teams."

"Interesting. And I am grateful you did come. It would have ended badly if you had not. For them or me."

"I am not sure anyone would have mourned had it been for them. But I am glad it did not go that way, for your sake. And even more so that it did not end badly for you."

"Yes. I do not wish to have anyone’s bloody on my hands." Her face darkened slightly, unusual for Wanda. There might be one person she could be willing to bend that rule for.

"Nor did those men deserve that distinction", he agreed.

Wanda smiled again, the dark quickly escaping from her eyes. "Yes. But onto happier subjects--do you still perform?"

Kurt shook his head slightly. "I have not performed in public since I came to the mansion. I teach the children dance and gymnastics, though, and I sometimes cover trapeze work for those who are interested."

"Would you mind if I watched then, once?" she asked, cheerfully. "I enjoyed the show very much. Very elegant how you moved."

He beamed. "I would be happy to show you. Perhaps even teach you a little, if you like."

"Me?" Wanda looked surprised and then delighted. "I am graceful on land, not so certain how I would be up _there_. But we only live once, do we not? I would love to try. You might want to have some padding, though," she teased. "I am certain to slip."

"We have plenty of padded mats", Kurt answered lightly. "But it is not so difficult, really."

"Remind me to meditate heavily beforehand," she murmured, grinning. "A slip of my powers while trying something like that would not bode well."

Kurt paused as he realized he'd never actually asked her about that. "If I may ask, what are your powers?"

"You probably remember the goose from before?" Wanda asked wryly. "My powers are chaos based. When I activate them, I can see strings attached to everything, showing entropy. I can...read them, to an extent. I'm not sure what the outcome will be but I know which ones are harmful."

"So you can choose to avoid the harmful ones?" Kurt asked, curious. "It does not sound so bad. Or does it not always work like that?"

"Not always. I have to meditate regularly, normally in the morning and evening, to make my mind calm. If I lose control, things to start happening without having to active the powers. Things break, that sort of thing. You mentioned a place that I could go to meditate?"

He nodded. "Ororo - another of the teachers here - maintains a greenhouse in the attic. It is usually quiet, I am not sure all of the residents even know it is there."

"You do not think she would mind me using it?"

"She has never objected to the few of us who do so regularly. As long as you do not harm the plants, I do not think she will mind at all."

Wanda chuckled as they neared the door to what she assumed was the greenhouse. "Not a plant or a blade of grass shall be harmed," she promised cheerfully and the abruptly reached out and grabbed Kurt's hands. "Thank you very much. Not only will I not get horrendously lost now but I had good company for this morning."

He smiled and squeezed her hands quickly before letting go. "I will happily show you the grounds, some other time, if you would like."

She smiled. "Any time, please."