ArchivedLogs:Treehouse of Terror

Treehouse of Terror
Dramatis Personae Sophie, Lucas Martin, Hank
In Absentia	2013-05-28 Xavier's gets a new student; Sophie didn't get the memo.
Location <XS> Treehouse
In midafternoon on a gray and mildly drizzly day, the treehouse isn't generally all that well-populated. IN FACT, the only person up here right now is Sophie, who has brought up a pillow to sit on and is currently working on knitting a scarf. There's a rainbow-colored umbrella sittin by the treehouse door, dripping water, and Sophie herself is dressed in a pair of jeans and an olive green T-shirt, the word 'BROOKLYN' emblazoned across the chest with a picture of a nest and two green parrots on top of it. A similarly olive green hoodie is folded nearby, next to a pair of Chuck Taylor sneakers in a purple, galactic print fabric. She is knitting very intently!! The bag had been dropped off in his room. There was no sign of his roommate... So what would Lucas Martin do? Take off onto the grounds. He had noticed this thing - this treehouse - as he had come onto the grounds. Little did he expect to actually //find someone// when he got to it. So, when he first opens the door to peer inside, he pauses when he first sees movement... before peeking further in. "Uh... hello?" The southern twang in Lucas' voice is very... thick. To say the least. "Y'busy?" he asks, head poking through the entranceway, eyes turned on Sophie. "No, I'm--" Sophie looks up from her knitting, a faint smile on her face, but it falls almost instantly when she sees Lucas. "--eek!" She tenses immediately, her knitting needles falling to the floor with the barely audible sound of wood on wood, and she straightens up a bit. Gulping, she looks over at her hoodie, not all that stealthy about it, and very, very slowly starts to sliink towards the garment. "No... I'm... just killing time..." Oh, yeah, that sounds entirely natural. Something, apparently, has gotten the girl almost terrified. Maybe she saw Deliverance too early in life. That was the fastest Lucas had ever seen anyone - girl, man, boy, woman... lose a smile. "Ah... huh." Pushing the door on open and moving to climb completely into the treehouse, he presents himself fully! He's decked out in a pair of jeans and a Carhartt t-shirt, solid green - no logo or anything. "... Uh, m'name's Lucas," he comments quietly, reaching up to run his hand over the back of his neck. "... I was just... you know. Checking this out. It looked pretty neat." Sophie is up in the treehouse with Lucas, who has just arrived both to the treehouse and to the school. She had been sitting in a corner knitting, but her knitting has been discarded mid-row and is shoved aside, while the ginger tries very hard to hastily dig through her hoodie and pull out a cell phone. "Oh, um, that's.. cool," she says in response to the southern boy, meanwhile she's pulling her phone open and texting the first teacher whose name comes up on her contact list; Hank will receive a message that reads simply, {Treehouse stranger help}. At least she didn't hit the panic button? That said, once the message is sent she sets the phone aside /so very subtly/ and just sort of. Sits there. Trying to look completely casual. "That's. Cool," she repeats, possibly not realizing she's repeating herself. "Uhm... Yeah!" Laughing a little strained, Lucas clears his throat. He begins to lower his hand from the back of his neck, then, realizing how awkward it was he was doing that. "Uhm... it's nice to meet you?" He begins to take a step forward, offering out his hand politely... seemingly harmless gesture, right? His power's in check - right now. No chance of burning the poor girl. "I'm Lucas. Lucas Martin... I hail from the Great State of Alabama," he comments softly, trying to sound less and less awkward. "Just... uhm... got..." The word 'sent' sounds kind of awkward. He wasn't so much 'sent' here as he was granted the opportunity to advance himself academically and mutation-wise! That was Doctor McCoy's promise, sort of. Right? When he talked to his parents. "I just got asked to come here to enroll for the summer term." ALARMS. More than anything right now, there are ALARMS. It's loud, its crazy, the sounds of doors, windows and shutters slamming closed can be heard all over campus. And then, bursting from the roof-access door, is big blue Dr. McCoy. He lopes across the roof and bounds into the treehouse, shaking it when he lands inside, ready to escort the two inside. "Lucas, Sophie, come inside now! Where did you see the intruder?" He's panting, and out of breath, eyes wide, and just on as full alert as the house seems to be. In hindsight Sophie probably should have expected this big reaction, though when it actually happens she almost jumps out of her skin. Those alarms are LOUD. When they start up, she gathers her things together, pulling her shoes on haphazardly and-- well, she hadn't really listened to what Lucas said. She was really just anticipating Hank showing up and checking things out, but this works too. And once the Beast does storm into the treehouse, she's up on her feet, running over to stand a bit behind him and off to his side, pointing at Lucas. "There!" And, after a moment of realization, "Who's Lucas?" And after further reflection. "...please don't tell me..." "--what just hap--" WHAM. Oh sweet Jesus what. The alarms going off were enough. The Beast landing on and then jumping down into the treehouse was even worse. Lucas looks like he could be //shot// when Hank shows up. "Doctor McCoy, what is going o--" The confusion on his face is ridiculously extreme as he watches Sophie scrambling, and his jaw drops open when she points at him. Then, stuttering. Then... probably the unexpected: "What the //Hell// did I do?!" Okay, it's probably //not// quite like Lucas to curse. He's an intelligent young southern gentleman. But what the //hell.// Hank McCoy, international beast of mystery, has dealt with more than a few hostile, tricksy mutants in his day. He narrows his eyes at Lucas, putting one protective hand behind him, on Sophie's shoulder. "Lucas," he shouts with such command, it can be heard even through mad sound of alarms. "What is your mother's middle name?" Hank knows how to deal with shapeshifters, by god! "Oh my god," Sophie just... sort of shrinks behind Beast. It's probable that that little comment isn't heard over the alarms, but she does start to tug on Beast's arm, gently. Meanwhile her face is turning bright red and she's biting her lower lip, staring at the floor while questions fly. "Dr. McCoy..." She mumbles, at first, but eventually repeats it a bit louder. "...Dr. McCoy I think I might have made a mistake." "--wh-" Blinking, Lucas looks... dumbfounded, quite suddenly, despite the fury. He just kind of stares at Hank for a moment, but despite the anger... he is compelled to answer. "It's Anne," he replies, staring. "Martha Anne Martin. Doctor McCoy... what is going on?!" he asks, now more confused than anything. His eyes cut between him, then Sophie, who gets a mixture of confusion and anger... This will be something to write home to the family about. Dear Mom and Dad, guess what! I managed to get the school put on lockdown fifteen minutes within stepping onto the campus. Hope you're well. Love and Kisses, Lucas Hank's eyes widen a little bit, and the rest of his face relaxes. He already gets that Lucas will know the next answer, but he has to ask. He straightens up, totally non-threatening stance. One hand reaches into his pocket and the alarms shut off. The doors and windows aren't unlocking, but blissful quiet settles over the treehouse. Funnily enough though, his other hand does /not/ leave Sophie's shoulder. It stays. Nice and firm. "And the labrador's name when you were 7?" "... Doctor McCoy... I never have //owned// a dog. My dad's allergic to dander," Lucas remarks quietly, eyes squinting slightly. The silence spreads out after he answers the question, and he just kind of //stares// at Sophie and Beast... torn between anger, confusion, and some other unidentifiable form of emotion that he's not quite sure //what// it is. "What. Just. Happened?" he asks slowly. Sophie just. Continues chewing on her lip for a minute, finding it very, very difficult to actually look at Lucas right now. Finally, though, she finally manages to just whisper, "I am so sorry." She's still holding Beast's arm, though not so much the tugging anymore; more gripping for support than anything. "I am so, so sorry," she adds. It actually looks like she's almost ready to start crying, but she's holding it in like a champ. "I just... I thought... I'm sorry." "Ok," Hank says. "Lets all just sit down for a second, ok?" He directs Sophie to move back into the treehouse, and then sits himself down, legs folded under, effectively blocking the exit with his mass. He reaches into his lab coat pocket this time, and the doors and windows below can be heard unlocking and sliding back open again. "I think I understand what happened here." Hank heaves another sigh, and forges ahead. "Lucas, just last week we had a number of students returned to us who had been kidnapped while they were in the city. Ever since they went missing, the faculty here have been on high alert. The good news is your school is very committed to your safety and well-being." Hank looks like he knows Lucas is owed an apology, but it's not owed by Hank. He glances to Sophie, to Lucas again, and then continues. "Lucas, your new friend here, and I promise you, she is well worth having as a friend, acted out of concern for all of her fellow classmates, by reporting an intruder to me. Unfortunately, she didn't realize that you, Lucas, were newly among those classmates, and not actually an intruder. So you can see how her /intentions/ were good. Myself, and the faculty, would even encourage this kind of diligence. But I can also see how it could make things awkward for the two of you." Hank reaches up to remove his spectacles and then remembers he isn't wearing them. He probably forgot, running out so fast. Instead he runs a hand over his face, briefly rubbing at his temples. "Lucas, I understand completely. I'm sure you're feeling hurt, upset. And with good reason. But I have a suggestion for both of you. As of right now, no one on campus knows /why/ I triggered the lockdown. I suggest A) Sophie apologizes, even though her actions were well-intended. B) Lucas accepts that apology on good faith, even though he's within his rights not to. And C) The three of us never mention this to any of the students. I'm sorry, I /do/ have to inform the faculty." Having sat down next to Hank at his direction to do so, Sophie just sort of buries her face in her hands while he's explaining what probably happened. She's also quietly nodding at everything he says; yeah, that's pretty much exactly what happened. When he's finished with the mini-lecture, she does gradually manage to lift her head to look at Lucas, and just... nods again. Her face is a bit moist, and she wipes at her eyes a little. "I really-- like I said, I really am /so/ sorry, I just... like Dr. McCoy said I've been... kind of freaked out since. Since all that happened." She bites her lip, sniffling. "And I'd never seen you before, and I... couldn't think of what else to do." Forming a bit of a mini-circle as he's directed to sit down, Lucas sits across from Hank, and kind of halfway-beside Sophie, but not close at all. No. God no. Once he settles, though, he lets his expression calm further and he listens to what is explained... And once Hank finishes, his quiet gaze turns toward Sophie. Seeing her tear-streaked face and everything else... he just kind of dies a little bit on the inside, and his face sinks down. He slowly begins to shake his head, and after a few moments, he raises both hands lightly into the air. "It's all right... Sophie, right?" He pauses, looking toward Hank for a moment... before looking back to Sophie. "Mistakes happen," he remarks lightly, "and.. well. We make mistakes still," he comments, a small smile coming to his face. He glances toward Hank, then. "I guess I could look at it as a 'it could be worse' kind of situation." His hands have since fallen into his lap, and he looks back to Sophie. "I'm cool," he offers her quietly, and he begins to scoot over to sit up enough on his knees to offer her his hand. "Let's try again. Hi. I'm Lucas," he remarks to her, beginning to smile.