xp_logs | LOG: Manuel and Carlie - Mutant Activism With Pepperoni and Mushrooms To Go

Manuel meets Carlie. He's just doing a little light reading, she's got some fire in her belly. They discuss mutant activism, and not surprisingly, disagree as to ways and means. Set on Sunday evening (1/23/2005)

Manuel was sitting in one of the Mansion's lounges. He wasn't doing much of anything specific, and for once he didn't have his iPod blaring. He had found a moonbeam, which suited his mood like a glove, and had his nose stuck in the Mansion's leatherbound copy of Machaivelli's _The Prince_. A little light reading before bed would suit him just fine.

This place was freaking _huge_. Carlie couldn't get over it. Jubilee was asleep, and she was still way too wired to sleep, so she'd taken herself for a walk. The light coming out of one of the lounges caught her attention, and she decided to go investigate. With any luck, it'd be someone interesting to talk to. Knocking on the edge of the open doorframe, she stuck her head in, seeing the young man sitting there. "Um, hi. I'm Carlie, Madelyn's sister. I was just passing by, saw the light... mind if I come in? I'm kinda bored and looking for company."

Manuel put his book down and smiles at the young woman. Bit of a looker, she was, and Manuel was so very much a sucker for a pretty face. "By all means." he said, gesturing to one of the overstuffed chairs. He then stood up himself, as the Polite Thing To Do. "I am Manuel." he said simply. "Please, join me."

"Oh, _you're_ Manny. Jubes has told me about you - she said you'd lost your memory or something and that's why she hadn't been to see you because she wanted you to have a fresh start without all the crap..." Carlie was half-way across the floor before her brain caught up with her mouth and she stopped herself. "Damn," she said weakly. "I probably shouldn't have said that. Jubes will kill me - don't tell her?"

Manuel sat back down and smiled graciously. "It is already forgotten." he said, and then studied Carlie a little more closely. Very nice indeed. "And while I did suffer an accident a short while ago, my memories are quite on the mend. I expect to remember just about everything inside of another month. So how do you like the Mansion so far?" he asked pleasantly.

"I love it!" Carlie sat with a little bounce, unable to restrain the enthusiasm. "It's an amazing place... and there's so many cool people! It's a pity I'm not a mutant myself - I'd love to be able to stay, but then again I've got school back home, and my family and friends, so yeah, have to go back, but still, I'm glad I finally got to come. I've been nagging Mad about it for _ages_ - she seemed to think it was dangerous or something. Though she might have had a point with the fire at the coffee shop... Were you there for that?"

Manuel nodded. "I was." he said simply. "A pity, they had a half-decent pot of easy-to-get-to coffee. The poor owner - I hope someone will compensate him for his loss." She had a very nice bounce, he had to give her that. Very nice indeed. "And while being a mutant is a large part of what the school is about, not everyone here has a power or two to throw around."

"He's probably insured," Carlie said. "So he'll be able to claim for the damage. Or sue the FoH - now _that'd_ be something to see. I'll have to talk to Mad about that, see if she can't suggest it to the owner or something..." That mental note taken, Carlie addressed the rest of what he'd said. "They don't? I mean, the little kids don't, but they're here with familiy for the most part."

Manuel leaned back and nodded. "I myself am quite powerless." he confessed. "It is unknown at what time my power will come back, if at all. Another legacy of my accident." he said. "So tell me about yourself, Carlie. You're looking into college options, I take it?" he asked, smiling charmingly at her.

"You lost your power? That sucks, dude." Carlie had obviously been spending too much time around Jubilee. "What was it? Jubes meant to say, but she got distracted and we ended up talking about nail polish colours and why puce should never _ever_ be seen on a cosmetics shelf..." She realised she was doing it again, getting distracted, and dragged herself back on-topic. The charm was noted, with a certain amount of caution - Jubes had said something about him dating Amanda, the scary witch bitch from hell. Not that she was scared of the girl, but she had agreed to behave herself while she was here. "I'm in my first year at Penn," she answered. "Poli-Sci and Journalism. I figure those will be most useful for changing the world."

Manuel grinned. "I used to be an empath. Strong one, too. And as far as nail polish colors go, it's hard to go wrong with just a clear-coat or, if feeling provocative, a nice scarlet. Puce is an abomination, I must agree with you there. I myself am looking into economics as a field of interest. My early schooling was .. erratic, to say the least, so I am trying to get caught up before progressing."

"Empath? What, you could tell what people were feeling, that sort of thing?" Carlie looked fascinated. "Wow. And it's broken? What sort of accident was it? Did you hit your head?"

"I honestly don't know. The precise details is one of the blank spots. If I had to guess, I think pharmaceuticals were probably used. I react oddly to a lot of medicines, especially ones designed to affect neurochemistry." he explained. "And yes, empathy as in the manipulation of emotional states. A handy power, if something of a curse as well as a blessing."

"Weird. So, what, you used to do a lot of drugs and that's maybe what happened? You don't still do that, do you? 'Cause, ick, drugs are just stupid. There's lots of other ways to have fun." She cocked her head at him curiously, a blonde-red curl falling across her face before she tucked it back behind her ear. "Manipulation? You could change how someone was feeling? Wow. That's a really nifty power, 'though, yeah, a bit on the freak-inducing side. People like to think they can control their feelings, you know? So having someone change their feelings for them would be pretty scary."

Manuel smiled tolerantly at Carlie. "No, no drugs. Again, I am just guessing, but I'd say lithium or thorazine. For obvious reasons, I react oddly to mood stabilizers." he explained. "And yes, I could see emotional states, and then reach out and change them. And people do like to think that they control how they feel." he said with a small secret smile. He knew otherwise, of course, but popping her bubble wasn't really in his game plan right now. "So what do you do for fun, Carlie? Besides take fashion advice from Jubilee?"

"More the other way around - I love Jubes, but her idea of colour co-ordination is scary..." Carlie wrinkled her nose a little at his tone - she was getting a serious Smug and Superior vibe from this guy. People tended to think she didn't really have a brain because of the way she rattled on, which was part of the reason she did it. It helped to put people off balance. But she wasn't stupid. "I'm fairly heavily into mutant rights," she continued, looking at her nails. "I've joined this group at school, we do a lot of protests, rallies, that sort of thing? And I'm trying out for the school newspaper - I need a few more articles published before they'll consider me."

He was losing her - he could see it in her posture, how she held herself, the slight dismissive cant to her words. He'd need to work on that. "It's just north of terrifying, actually." he confided with a laugh. "And that's without my enhanced color discrimination. Mutant rights? How very interesting. I suppose you have an opinion on the Columbia tragedy?"

She nodded. "I know there's a bunch of people from here going - I thought I'd tag along. It makes me sick that people are trying to use this as an excuse to bring back the Mutant Registration Act, like the actions of a few should be the responsibility of the entire group. Like mutants are some giant hive-mind or something."

"Hiveminds are somewhat rare, if I remember my classes correctly." he said with a grin. "Almost as rare as sane empaths. But yes, as usual, it's a few bad apples who spoil it for everyone. There are clear analogies to the sufferage movement as well as the ongoing civil rights struggle in the USA." he said. "Absurdities like the Mutant Registration Act aside - as far as I can tell it's just Jim Crow all dressed up for a new genetic era."

"Oh, totally. There's already some schools finding reasons to exempt mutant students - the public indemnity insurance being too much for mutants, health risks, that sort of bullshit." Carlie frowned. "At least Columbia didn't do that after what happened - they actually reacted incredibly well, considering."

"They wouldn't dare do otherwise." Manuel noted. "Not with Xavier's so close, and with his own friends in the legal and judicial systems.They have a point about the insurance costs, though. When a normal, like yourself, runs riot, the worst you can get is a few dozen dead. Take someone like Jubilee, for example. If she ever cut loose, she could lay waste to entire city blocks. I have no doubt of this." he said with a knowing nod. "The insurance companies collectively shit themselves at the thought of paying claims on something like that, so they by necessity jack their rates as high as they dare and pray that a case never hits them."

"So you're saying the professors at Columbia are scared of Professor Xavier and his legal clout? That it wasn't perhaps maybe that they aren't assholes, like some school boards are. It's not that unusual, that humans actually give a shit for mutant rights, even those in positions of power. Take Penn U - it's got an active policy to encourage mutants to enroll, and a truckload of support systems to help them while they're there," Carlie retorted, stung at the mercenariness of the idea. She was idealistic, but not naive, and she had considered this, but it still irked her to hear it so bluntly put. "And yeah, you do have a point about the danger, but as long as mutants are seen as somethign to be feared, they're going to keep thinking of themselves as freaks and outcasts, which doesn't exactly lead to a stable mindset. Which leads to people like these "Magneto was right" freaks." Carlie sat back, a little flushed from the outburst.

Manuel nodded. "If it makes you feel better, I happen to agree with you to a large extent." he said with a smile. "But like PoliSci is your field, economics is mine. And the economic picture isn't a pretty one. And knowing Professor Xavier, he would never do something quite so blatant and crude as to threaten anyone. It is entirely possible that he simply talked to the school board, explained things to them, and let them draw the obvious conclusions."

"Economics always renders things down to monetary value - of course it's not a pretty picture. There's more to life than money, but economists just don't think of that." Carlie srhugged the concept off dismissively. "Maybe he did - I doubt it, 'though from what Jubes has told me of the man. He seems more the type to address people's better natures than to make noises about lawsuits."

Ah, liberal arts types. So full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. "Professor Xavier is a master at appealing to people's better natures." he agreed wholeheartedly. "He gives of himself selflessly, wanting only a better world for all."

Sarcastic bastard. "He made this place, didn't he?" she pointed out. "From what I understand, a lot of the people here aren't paying fees or anything - he supports them. LIke Jubes - she's got no income, but he hasn't sent her away. I'd say that's a good indication the man wants a better world, wouldn't you?"

Manuel nodded. "He did indeed. A perfect example of what I am talking about." he said with a smile. "Those who can, contribute what they can." he said mildly. "All of us here take it as our own sacred duty to do our own parts, large or small, to make this a better world for everyone. Mutant, human, genejoke, flatscan, it doesn't matter in the slightest."

Carlie narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you laughing at me? Because that's the feeling I'm getting from you. 'Oh, lets poke fun at the idealist, shall we'? 'Cause maybe I am idealistic, but that doesn't mean I'm stupid."

"Not at all!" Manuel protested. "I am merely having a pleasant conversation with a very pretty girl." he said. "Idealism is all very well and good. I certainly have no quarrel with it! I certainly never said, or even intended, to question your intelligence or your dedication to your ideals."

"Yeah, well, I've got a pretty good bullshit detector, and you're setting it off. 'Sacred duty' my ass." Carlie looked disgruntled. "But I could be being paranoid. Family trait, not taking bullshit. Explains Mad and my career choices - her with the FBI and me with the journalism."

Manuel shrugged. "A little bit of flowery language and I set off your bullshit detector? You might want to get that recalibrated." he said, still with his pleasant smile and relaxed demeanor. "You'll never do well in journalism or politics if you're that twitchy."

"Flowery language from an economics student, remember? Bottom line, all the rest - are you always so smarmy, by the way? Because real people don't like being made to feel you're playing them, and that's what I'm getting from you."

"I grew up in the tender embraces of minority politics." he said pleasantly. "Oppressed ethnic groups, the whole deal. So I've been exposed to this sort of thing for a long, long time now." he countered. "I'm originally from Spain. Basque country, in particular." he said obliquely. He then shook his head. "I keep forgetting that not everyone had the same exposures and experiences that I did. When I was very small, my father would often gather several prominent Basques together along with some Spaniards, and they would sit and drink the tart apple cider or the sweet red wines and talk. For hours. Tempers would flare and voices would rise, but at the end of the day there would be a fine feeling of comradeship."

"It sounds like a very odd childhood," Carlie said, mollified slightly. Tolerence, she reminded herself. No need to jump down the guy's throat when he hadn't really _done_ anything. "And I understand the comradeship - the group gets together and argues for hours over beer and pizza." She grinned wryly. "A lot lower-class than your dad and his friends, but the same sort of thing."

"I am almost fairly certain that some of the men who would attend these meetings were my father's most bitter enemies, but you're right. It's the same sort of deal. So why is it that when I do this with you that you call bullshit?" he asked pleasantly. "I would like to know, so that I can try to do a little better."

"You were doing fine until you started all that smarmy agreeing with me crap. That stuff about sacred duties and the rest - it came off as phoney, from what we'd already been talking about and the impression I had of you," Carlie said frankly. "Disagree with me all you want, but all that stuff you said? Sounded like you were making fun of me."

Manuel shrugged. "Not at all." he said. "We agree in broad strokes, but the finer details I believe that we could debate." he grinned. "Well, the hour is late, so unless you'd like to take this somewhere a little more private I think I will bid you good night."

Carlie snickered. "Yeah, Jubes told me about the flirting. Go back to your girlfriend and have fun."

"She's a very naughty girl. A lady should never kiss and tell. It's unseemly." he said with a laugh. "Alas, I shall retire to my bed alone for the night. Good night, Carlie. Sleep well, and I hope to see you in the morning. Brunch, perhaps, if you're not otherwise engaged? I'd like to hear your thoughts about how your college pro-mutant organization works."

"Two teenage girls, a lot of sugar, and staying up all night? There's going to be gossip, dude." Carlie snickered at the memory. "And yeah, I'd like that. Maybe get some of the others involved, like that Forge guy? We could recreate your father's sessions, only with juice and coffee instead of cider and wine."

Not _quite_ what he had in mind, but he'd take any small victory he could get. "Just remember - whatever she told you? It's probably true." he laughed, and then stood up to place the Machaivelli, face-up, on the table next to his chair before retiring back to his own room.