Laura and Midnighter - Backdated
Dec. 15th, 2014 05:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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om_mainMidnighter goes to check in with Laura; she makes a decision.
Usually they kept to their own areas, outside of their regular sparring sessions. So when Midnighter headed straight for Talon's corner of the woods, he didn't doubt that she would get the message that he wanted to see her, and that she would come to him when she could. He stopped in a clearing they had sparred in once or twice and, not one to spend time just waiting around doing nothing, started going through one of his homemade katas.
It was as close to meditation as he got, but being that focused on his own body didn't mean that he was ignoring the outside world, far from it. So when he noticed her coming closer, he stopped moving and turned to face her.
Laura came to a stop at the edge of the clearing, letting his head adjust to her presence before doing anything else. It was more courtesy than necessity, since she knew that he'd come a long way since he'd first arrived. However, it was also an acknowledgement that her body language was more tense and unpredictable than usual, leaving more room for miscommunication between them if they weren't careful.
Midnighter took her stance in at a glance, noting the upped tension in her muscles. It was one thing among many he could detect in people; it was a good indication of how much of a threat they might turn out to be. The scenarios changed accordingly, filing through his brain, but he ignored them to nod a greeting at her.
"I've been working with him." John - Daken - her half brother. He didn't think he needed to specify; he wasn't sure he'd needed to even say as much, but it was as good a way as any to start the conversation.
"He thinks that means he's a master now," Laura answered, pulling her arms around herself like she never would have done before.
Midnighter frowned at that. "He talks too much." That had better be a symptom of him running his mouth off again, rather than him actually believing that. Only a fucking idiot would think that he was a master now; if nothing else, his sessions with Midnighter proved Daken still had a way to go. Eventually, the kid would even realize there would always be a way to go. If Midnighter wasn't wrong to see hope for him, anyway.
"Thank you, for helping him," she agreed, bowing her head briefly. "He needs the discipline, but it's difficult for me to communicate with him."
"It's difficult for him to communicate with most people," Midnighter replied. And Talon wasn't reputed for her gift at communication, either, so this wasn't exactly a surprise. The family component probably fucked things up in a way Midnighter could only try to imagine. "But you're trying." Almost but not quite inflected like a question. She could take it as she wanted.
A furrow beveled her brow - a tiny little storm cloud of confusion and frustration. She wasn't sure that she was trying, but the flood of emotion Daken provoked in her was almost always overwhelming. "I think I may leave," she countered instead.
There was nothing tiny about the frown that came over Midnighter's brow at that. "Why?"
"The school will be public. The Facility will be watching. If they find out that I'm here, they may try to use the trigger scent on me," Laura clenched her hands, then forced them to relax again.
"So your plan's to abandon them all," Midnighter retorted flatly. "How the fuck would they find out?"
She frowned, leaning back against a tree, arms tucked around herself. "I wasn't given this name. I took it, from a Facility scientist that experimented on me. They could track my name, or if they monitor the campus..."
"Get them to enroll you under another name," Midnighter replied. It wasn't like he was officially 'Midnighter', and anything else was just not his name, as far as he was concerned. "And I'd like to see them try." Monitoring the campus; that would certainly give him an occasion to let loose on some worthy assholes.
Of course he didn't actually mean it; he'd rather they kept far away from the school and its pupils. But the thought of a real fight was tempting all the same.
She lowered her gaze, her thoughts clearly racing from one eventuality to another. She'd never wanted to come here and put the others in danger, but she'd gone with Xavier anyway, and in the end, Ariel and Northstar had suffered for it.
"They'll come sniffing around whether you're here or not," Midnighter went on after a few seconds of silence. "But they won't be the only ones. I sure as fuck would feel better if you stuck around." Whatever that was worth. He'd put her down if it was needed; it was a risk worth taking.
Laura was quiet for a moment, but finally looked up. Without answering what he'd admitted, she met his gaze. "Why were you looking for me?"
It was part of why admitting shit like that to Talon was okay, Midnighter thought as she ignored his words. Still, what she asked, that meant an admission of another kind. He let a beat go, then answered, "Checking in." Yeah, he was concerned about her. So fucking sue him.
She was quiet for another bit, then rolled her shoulders slightly. "I will stay. If you promise to put me down if I ever go after another student."
"Like you even have to ask," Midnighter replied without missing a beat. That, at least, he had no issue saying.
Laura breathed deep, inhaling the scents of the school and the forest. "Will you continue helping Daken?"
"Him learning control's in everybody's best interest," Midnighter confirmed. No doubt there either.
She nodded slightly in agreement. The fact that he was so confident when he had been working with Midnighter was unsettling, since most people would accept that they were woefully outmatched. Her half-brother seemed to be more thick-skulled than anything else. "Thank you. I will...try harder to improve communication with him."
Midnighter didn't know what to do with that; it was one of those family obligation things, he was pretty sure, and he didn't have the first fucking clue about those. It wasn't like he had a clue about family, period. "I'll be around," he said, unnecessarily. It was an offer for her to come talk to him whenever she wanted, rather than an actual statement.
She said nothing to that, knowing that he didn't need her to. Conversations were easier between them than with anyone else. Trade information, coordinate their plans, then depart. That he cared about her state of mind...was new, but nice. "Thank you," she offered again, then headed back into the woods.
Usually they kept to their own areas, outside of their regular sparring sessions. So when Midnighter headed straight for Talon's corner of the woods, he didn't doubt that she would get the message that he wanted to see her, and that she would come to him when she could. He stopped in a clearing they had sparred in once or twice and, not one to spend time just waiting around doing nothing, started going through one of his homemade katas.
It was as close to meditation as he got, but being that focused on his own body didn't mean that he was ignoring the outside world, far from it. So when he noticed her coming closer, he stopped moving and turned to face her.
Laura came to a stop at the edge of the clearing, letting his head adjust to her presence before doing anything else. It was more courtesy than necessity, since she knew that he'd come a long way since he'd first arrived. However, it was also an acknowledgement that her body language was more tense and unpredictable than usual, leaving more room for miscommunication between them if they weren't careful.
Midnighter took her stance in at a glance, noting the upped tension in her muscles. It was one thing among many he could detect in people; it was a good indication of how much of a threat they might turn out to be. The scenarios changed accordingly, filing through his brain, but he ignored them to nod a greeting at her.
"I've been working with him." John - Daken - her half brother. He didn't think he needed to specify; he wasn't sure he'd needed to even say as much, but it was as good a way as any to start the conversation.
"He thinks that means he's a master now," Laura answered, pulling her arms around herself like she never would have done before.
Midnighter frowned at that. "He talks too much." That had better be a symptom of him running his mouth off again, rather than him actually believing that. Only a fucking idiot would think that he was a master now; if nothing else, his sessions with Midnighter proved Daken still had a way to go. Eventually, the kid would even realize there would always be a way to go. If Midnighter wasn't wrong to see hope for him, anyway.
"Thank you, for helping him," she agreed, bowing her head briefly. "He needs the discipline, but it's difficult for me to communicate with him."
"It's difficult for him to communicate with most people," Midnighter replied. And Talon wasn't reputed for her gift at communication, either, so this wasn't exactly a surprise. The family component probably fucked things up in a way Midnighter could only try to imagine. "But you're trying." Almost but not quite inflected like a question. She could take it as she wanted.
A furrow beveled her brow - a tiny little storm cloud of confusion and frustration. She wasn't sure that she was trying, but the flood of emotion Daken provoked in her was almost always overwhelming. "I think I may leave," she countered instead.
There was nothing tiny about the frown that came over Midnighter's brow at that. "Why?"
"The school will be public. The Facility will be watching. If they find out that I'm here, they may try to use the trigger scent on me," Laura clenched her hands, then forced them to relax again.
"So your plan's to abandon them all," Midnighter retorted flatly. "How the fuck would they find out?"
She frowned, leaning back against a tree, arms tucked around herself. "I wasn't given this name. I took it, from a Facility scientist that experimented on me. They could track my name, or if they monitor the campus..."
"Get them to enroll you under another name," Midnighter replied. It wasn't like he was officially 'Midnighter', and anything else was just not his name, as far as he was concerned. "And I'd like to see them try." Monitoring the campus; that would certainly give him an occasion to let loose on some worthy assholes.
Of course he didn't actually mean it; he'd rather they kept far away from the school and its pupils. But the thought of a real fight was tempting all the same.
She lowered her gaze, her thoughts clearly racing from one eventuality to another. She'd never wanted to come here and put the others in danger, but she'd gone with Xavier anyway, and in the end, Ariel and Northstar had suffered for it.
"They'll come sniffing around whether you're here or not," Midnighter went on after a few seconds of silence. "But they won't be the only ones. I sure as fuck would feel better if you stuck around." Whatever that was worth. He'd put her down if it was needed; it was a risk worth taking.
Laura was quiet for a moment, but finally looked up. Without answering what he'd admitted, she met his gaze. "Why were you looking for me?"
It was part of why admitting shit like that to Talon was okay, Midnighter thought as she ignored his words. Still, what she asked, that meant an admission of another kind. He let a beat go, then answered, "Checking in." Yeah, he was concerned about her. So fucking sue him.
She was quiet for another bit, then rolled her shoulders slightly. "I will stay. If you promise to put me down if I ever go after another student."
"Like you even have to ask," Midnighter replied without missing a beat. That, at least, he had no issue saying.
Laura breathed deep, inhaling the scents of the school and the forest. "Will you continue helping Daken?"
"Him learning control's in everybody's best interest," Midnighter confirmed. No doubt there either.
She nodded slightly in agreement. The fact that he was so confident when he had been working with Midnighter was unsettling, since most people would accept that they were woefully outmatched. Her half-brother seemed to be more thick-skulled than anything else. "Thank you. I will...try harder to improve communication with him."
Midnighter didn't know what to do with that; it was one of those family obligation things, he was pretty sure, and he didn't have the first fucking clue about those. It wasn't like he had a clue about family, period. "I'll be around," he said, unnecessarily. It was an offer for her to come talk to him whenever she wanted, rather than an actual statement.
She said nothing to that, knowing that he didn't need her to. Conversations were easier between them than with anyone else. Trade information, coordinate their plans, then depart. That he cared about her state of mind...was new, but nice. "Thank you," she offered again, then headed back into the woods.
