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om_mainKarolina and Brian catch up over lunch.
Brian had resurfaced from his work in the lab only once today, and he headed directly towards the kitchen. On days like this, he'd no need for gourmet, or even a proper meal, he simply needed sufficient caloric intake to continue his work. So he made his way into the kitchen with purpose, only to find...he was not the only person in there.
"Hello," he greeted politely. "Good afternoon."
In the middle of making a batch of vegetarian burritos, Karolina glanced over her shoulder, smiling warmly in greeting, “Hey!” She did a double-take and then quickly turned around. “Brian?” Wiping her hands on her apron, she approached him. “Brian Braddock? Betsy said you were here too!” She’d known, of course, that he was a mutant, having seen his press conference, but, until Betsy had mentioned it, she’d had absolutely no idea that he was attending school here. It made sense and made her wonder his and Warren’s coming out had been a clever PR move planned out by the headmasters.
"Miss Dean," he replied, smiling a bit more geniunely. If they'd not been frequent companions, he had certainly encountered her more than once. And Karolina Dean had not once failed to be lovely. Brian offered her a large hand to shake. "I do apologize for not having located you sooner. I have been occupied with my work."
Karolina took the offered hand, her own practically disappearing in it, and smiled warmly. “Oh, no,” she told Brian. “I hardly expect everyone to drop what they’re doing because I’m here. It is so nice to see you though! How long have you been at the school? Did you and Betsy come here at the same time?” To think she’d felt so alone for so long and all this time there had been so many people (some of them she even knew!) who were just like her. She couldn’t believe it.
"I have been here for several months," he replied, nodding slightly. "Elizabeth arrived before I did. She manifested quite a bit before myself."
Manifested. That was the word the headmasters had used too. “I manifested when I was fourteen. I’ve been keeping it a secret. My parents didn’t even know until recently. I didn’t even know what I was until that poor girl.” Karolina’s heart hurt for Elaine and her expression showed it as she turned away, back to her nearly finished burritos, gesturing at them with a hand, “Are you hungry? There’s plenty to go around.”
He looked surprised at the offer, but pleased. "If it is no imposition...I would be honored to dine with you."
Karolina smiled over her shoulder at Brian, “It’s no imposition at all.” She took a second plate from the cabinet and put two burritos on it, then put two on her own and brought them both over to the island. She set one of the plates down in front of Brian and smiled at him. “So, how do you like it here so far?”
"Thank you," he told her happily. Brian cut into his first burrito - with fork and knife, naturally - and thought as he ate his first bite.
"The school is an excellent institution," he finally pronounced. High praise, coming from Brian Braddock. "I confess to having a continued affinity for Fettes. However, given the circumstances, Xavier's is an acceptable substitute. How are you settling in?"
“Mhm.” Picking up a burrito, Karolina took a bite, chewing and swallowing before adding, “It’s an adjustment, but I’m doing okay. Everyone seems really nice so far.” She picked up a fallen piece of tomato and ate it, then playfully made a face, her nose wrinkling. “I miss the weather in California. It’s so cold here already!”
Brian chuckled, both at her expression and her complaint. "You've experienced winter before, I am certain."
Karolina laughed at herself and jokingly informed Brian, “It’s different when it’s during vacation.” She went to the fridge and came back with two bottled waters, sliding once across the island to him. “I do like it here though. It’s nice knowing I’m not alone.”
"You are not," he agreed, nodding. "And given the sheer number of individuals here, I suspect you will not be wanting for people happy to share the experience with you."
Taking another bite of burrito, Karolina nodded. “Definitely!” she agreed after she’d swallowed, smiling. “I can’t believe there are so many other mutants here. I hadn’t realized there were so many of us. I never even imagined!”
From a statistical stand point the scientist in Brian was compelled to note that this group of students, no matter how unruly, was not quite a drop in the bucket of the world's population. That was not what he said to Karolina, however - there was no need to be impertinent. Besides, he imagined it seemed like a massive number of people for those not yet accustomed to it, and used to being alone. "I had imagined there were others, beyond Elizabeth, but I admit the variety was something of a surprise."
Nodding, Karolina said, “Yeah, exactly. I knew there were others, I just didn’t expect this.” She laughed a little. “Though, honestly, I don’t know what I expected either.” Maybe what was throwing her the most was just how many people here she knew or knew of. There were billions of people on the planet, only a small handful of which were mutants, and yet somehow a lot of them knew one another from before.
Karolina tore off a bit of the tortilla, asking, “How’s Betsy?” before eating it.
"Good, good," Brian said, nodding a bit. He took another bite of the food Karolina had prepared, and made a note to thank her properly. "She seems to be excelling in the environment."
“That’s great,” Karolina said, smiling. “I’m not surprised. She’s always struck me as the kind of person that could excel anywhere.”
He nodded some more, in complete agreement with Karolina's assessment of his twin sister. "Quite. Have you seen her yet?"
Karolina shook her head, “Not yet. I’m looking forward to it though.” It’d been awhile since she’d seen her, long enough that she wasn’t even sure when it had last been. “It’ll be nice to see her.”
"I am certain she will enjoy seeing you," he said. Brian could tell, in fact, that reminders of their old life were both frustrating and comforting to his sister. Reminders that she was still her, regardless of what had transpired. Reminders that things were not quite the same.
That made Karolina smile, “I’ll enjoy seeing her too!” She took another bite of burrito, washing it down with a drink of water before adding, “Have you seen many other familiar faces around here? A few people I know, or know of, said hello to me on the computer.”
He nodded. "Warren Worthington III, Roberto DaCosta, Tony Stark, Shinobi Shaw...." Frankly, the number of people he knew at the school was quite surprising. "Do you know them?"
“Mm,” Karolina confirmed with a nod. “A few of them personally, the others I’ve only heard of.” The familiar faces were nice and she felt bad for the people here who didn’t have that. “Anyone you’re close to, I hope?”
Brian paused as he thought about that. Before he had arrived, he might have said he was friends with Warren Worthington, III. Now he supposed they were...colleagues, acquaintances, but friends might be something of a stretch. Shinobi was ephemeral as always, and equally as difficult to define. Tony was a child. "A number of acquaintances," he finally said.
Karolina nodded a little, her smile soft and almost sympathetic. That was the Brian she knew; he had always seemed so distant and reserved. “That’s how I feel, I guess,” she said, breaking off a bit of flour tortilla. “But I imagine it’s more than what a lot of people have when they first get here.”
"I suppose, in that respect, we are indeed quite fortunate," Brian agreed, nodding. "I imagine it is a bit disconcerting, for those coming here with no familiar faces."
“Difficult too,” Karolina added. Finding out you were a mutant could be hard enough, but coming to a strange place filled with unfamiliar faces had to make it harder. It had to be lonelier too.
"Perhaps." Though Brian, if forced, would have to admit that he'd never before felt such a level of loneliness. Even when he knew no one, he knew Betsy. Even when she was not there with him, as when she'd been modeling, he'd always had someone somewhere. It made it hard to quite comprehend the difficulty for those who lacked that sort of support.
“I hope not,” Karolina added with a small smile. Unfortunately, it was unlikely. “Either way, the best thing to do is to try to make every new student who comes here feel as welcome as possible.” Maybe that would help anyone who did feel alone feel, at least, a little less alone.’
"I suspect, on that score, you shall be far more helpful than I," Brian said, with a smile that was small but genuine.
Touched by the compliment, Karolina smiled warmly, “That’s really sweet of you to say.” She gave Brian another smile. “I think you’re selling yourself short though. You’ve made me feel welcome and I doubt I’m the first. Or the last.”
"You may be both," he confessed. He knew he was not particularly welcoming, and certainly not compared to many of the others here. "And I was acquainted with you already."
Smiling again, warm and teasing, Karolina replied, “I still doubt it.” She picked up her dirty dish and carried it to the sink. “You’re a good guy, Brian. People see that.” Turning on the water, she started to wash the dish.
He followed her over with his own dish. "I very much appreciate the compliment." Brian did, of course, admit that he was a good fellow. However, that did not necessarily translate into being a sociable sort - they seemed fairly different skill sets, to him. To the extent that being a good person could even be considered a skill.
Karolina smiled at Brian and bumped her shoulder against his arm, as high as she could reach on her much taller friend. “You are very much welcome. And now,” she sighed as she put the clean dish on the rack to dry, “sadly, I have homework I have to get to. I’ll talk to you later, I hope?”
"Of course. I do hope you will not hesitate to let me know if there is anything I might do to assist you."
“I won’t,” Karolina replied, her smile warm. “And the same goes for you.” She dried her hands on a nearby dish towel and waved to her friend. “Bye, Brian. It was really good to see you. Thanks for having lunch with me.”
He smiled back - Karolina was always so pleasant. "Thank you for your company, as well."
Brian had resurfaced from his work in the lab only once today, and he headed directly towards the kitchen. On days like this, he'd no need for gourmet, or even a proper meal, he simply needed sufficient caloric intake to continue his work. So he made his way into the kitchen with purpose, only to find...he was not the only person in there.
"Hello," he greeted politely. "Good afternoon."
In the middle of making a batch of vegetarian burritos, Karolina glanced over her shoulder, smiling warmly in greeting, “Hey!” She did a double-take and then quickly turned around. “Brian?” Wiping her hands on her apron, she approached him. “Brian Braddock? Betsy said you were here too!” She’d known, of course, that he was a mutant, having seen his press conference, but, until Betsy had mentioned it, she’d had absolutely no idea that he was attending school here. It made sense and made her wonder his and Warren’s coming out had been a clever PR move planned out by the headmasters.
"Miss Dean," he replied, smiling a bit more geniunely. If they'd not been frequent companions, he had certainly encountered her more than once. And Karolina Dean had not once failed to be lovely. Brian offered her a large hand to shake. "I do apologize for not having located you sooner. I have been occupied with my work."
Karolina took the offered hand, her own practically disappearing in it, and smiled warmly. “Oh, no,” she told Brian. “I hardly expect everyone to drop what they’re doing because I’m here. It is so nice to see you though! How long have you been at the school? Did you and Betsy come here at the same time?” To think she’d felt so alone for so long and all this time there had been so many people (some of them she even knew!) who were just like her. She couldn’t believe it.
"I have been here for several months," he replied, nodding slightly. "Elizabeth arrived before I did. She manifested quite a bit before myself."
Manifested. That was the word the headmasters had used too. “I manifested when I was fourteen. I’ve been keeping it a secret. My parents didn’t even know until recently. I didn’t even know what I was until that poor girl.” Karolina’s heart hurt for Elaine and her expression showed it as she turned away, back to her nearly finished burritos, gesturing at them with a hand, “Are you hungry? There’s plenty to go around.”
He looked surprised at the offer, but pleased. "If it is no imposition...I would be honored to dine with you."
Karolina smiled over her shoulder at Brian, “It’s no imposition at all.” She took a second plate from the cabinet and put two burritos on it, then put two on her own and brought them both over to the island. She set one of the plates down in front of Brian and smiled at him. “So, how do you like it here so far?”
"Thank you," he told her happily. Brian cut into his first burrito - with fork and knife, naturally - and thought as he ate his first bite.
"The school is an excellent institution," he finally pronounced. High praise, coming from Brian Braddock. "I confess to having a continued affinity for Fettes. However, given the circumstances, Xavier's is an acceptable substitute. How are you settling in?"
“Mhm.” Picking up a burrito, Karolina took a bite, chewing and swallowing before adding, “It’s an adjustment, but I’m doing okay. Everyone seems really nice so far.” She picked up a fallen piece of tomato and ate it, then playfully made a face, her nose wrinkling. “I miss the weather in California. It’s so cold here already!”
Brian chuckled, both at her expression and her complaint. "You've experienced winter before, I am certain."
Karolina laughed at herself and jokingly informed Brian, “It’s different when it’s during vacation.” She went to the fridge and came back with two bottled waters, sliding once across the island to him. “I do like it here though. It’s nice knowing I’m not alone.”
"You are not," he agreed, nodding. "And given the sheer number of individuals here, I suspect you will not be wanting for people happy to share the experience with you."
Taking another bite of burrito, Karolina nodded. “Definitely!” she agreed after she’d swallowed, smiling. “I can’t believe there are so many other mutants here. I hadn’t realized there were so many of us. I never even imagined!”
From a statistical stand point the scientist in Brian was compelled to note that this group of students, no matter how unruly, was not quite a drop in the bucket of the world's population. That was not what he said to Karolina, however - there was no need to be impertinent. Besides, he imagined it seemed like a massive number of people for those not yet accustomed to it, and used to being alone. "I had imagined there were others, beyond Elizabeth, but I admit the variety was something of a surprise."
Nodding, Karolina said, “Yeah, exactly. I knew there were others, I just didn’t expect this.” She laughed a little. “Though, honestly, I don’t know what I expected either.” Maybe what was throwing her the most was just how many people here she knew or knew of. There were billions of people on the planet, only a small handful of which were mutants, and yet somehow a lot of them knew one another from before.
Karolina tore off a bit of the tortilla, asking, “How’s Betsy?” before eating it.
"Good, good," Brian said, nodding a bit. He took another bite of the food Karolina had prepared, and made a note to thank her properly. "She seems to be excelling in the environment."
“That’s great,” Karolina said, smiling. “I’m not surprised. She’s always struck me as the kind of person that could excel anywhere.”
He nodded some more, in complete agreement with Karolina's assessment of his twin sister. "Quite. Have you seen her yet?"
Karolina shook her head, “Not yet. I’m looking forward to it though.” It’d been awhile since she’d seen her, long enough that she wasn’t even sure when it had last been. “It’ll be nice to see her.”
"I am certain she will enjoy seeing you," he said. Brian could tell, in fact, that reminders of their old life were both frustrating and comforting to his sister. Reminders that she was still her, regardless of what had transpired. Reminders that things were not quite the same.
That made Karolina smile, “I’ll enjoy seeing her too!” She took another bite of burrito, washing it down with a drink of water before adding, “Have you seen many other familiar faces around here? A few people I know, or know of, said hello to me on the computer.”
He nodded. "Warren Worthington III, Roberto DaCosta, Tony Stark, Shinobi Shaw...." Frankly, the number of people he knew at the school was quite surprising. "Do you know them?"
“Mm,” Karolina confirmed with a nod. “A few of them personally, the others I’ve only heard of.” The familiar faces were nice and she felt bad for the people here who didn’t have that. “Anyone you’re close to, I hope?”
Brian paused as he thought about that. Before he had arrived, he might have said he was friends with Warren Worthington, III. Now he supposed they were...colleagues, acquaintances, but friends might be something of a stretch. Shinobi was ephemeral as always, and equally as difficult to define. Tony was a child. "A number of acquaintances," he finally said.
Karolina nodded a little, her smile soft and almost sympathetic. That was the Brian she knew; he had always seemed so distant and reserved. “That’s how I feel, I guess,” she said, breaking off a bit of flour tortilla. “But I imagine it’s more than what a lot of people have when they first get here.”
"I suppose, in that respect, we are indeed quite fortunate," Brian agreed, nodding. "I imagine it is a bit disconcerting, for those coming here with no familiar faces."
“Difficult too,” Karolina added. Finding out you were a mutant could be hard enough, but coming to a strange place filled with unfamiliar faces had to make it harder. It had to be lonelier too.
"Perhaps." Though Brian, if forced, would have to admit that he'd never before felt such a level of loneliness. Even when he knew no one, he knew Betsy. Even when she was not there with him, as when she'd been modeling, he'd always had someone somewhere. It made it hard to quite comprehend the difficulty for those who lacked that sort of support.
“I hope not,” Karolina added with a small smile. Unfortunately, it was unlikely. “Either way, the best thing to do is to try to make every new student who comes here feel as welcome as possible.” Maybe that would help anyone who did feel alone feel, at least, a little less alone.’
"I suspect, on that score, you shall be far more helpful than I," Brian said, with a smile that was small but genuine.
Touched by the compliment, Karolina smiled warmly, “That’s really sweet of you to say.” She gave Brian another smile. “I think you’re selling yourself short though. You’ve made me feel welcome and I doubt I’m the first. Or the last.”
"You may be both," he confessed. He knew he was not particularly welcoming, and certainly not compared to many of the others here. "And I was acquainted with you already."
Smiling again, warm and teasing, Karolina replied, “I still doubt it.” She picked up her dirty dish and carried it to the sink. “You’re a good guy, Brian. People see that.” Turning on the water, she started to wash the dish.
He followed her over with his own dish. "I very much appreciate the compliment." Brian did, of course, admit that he was a good fellow. However, that did not necessarily translate into being a sociable sort - they seemed fairly different skill sets, to him. To the extent that being a good person could even be considered a skill.
Karolina smiled at Brian and bumped her shoulder against his arm, as high as she could reach on her much taller friend. “You are very much welcome. And now,” she sighed as she put the clean dish on the rack to dry, “sadly, I have homework I have to get to. I’ll talk to you later, I hope?”
"Of course. I do hope you will not hesitate to let me know if there is anything I might do to assist you."
“I won’t,” Karolina replied, her smile warm. “And the same goes for you.” She dried her hands on a nearby dish towel and waved to her friend. “Bye, Brian. It was really good to see you. Thanks for having lunch with me.”
He smiled back - Karolina was always so pleasant. "Thank you for your company, as well."
